Mimesis
by sademerkki
Summary: AU Companion fic to PhilosAdelphos.Naruto was supposed to sacrifice his life saving the world.Instead, he ends up assuming the identity of a dead relative and being called upon to fight once again.Will his Nindo survive the fires of the Third Shinobi War? On Hiatus.
1. Death of Naruto

Hey, this is the companion fic for Philos Adelphos, Mimesis. They'll have the same first chapter, cause I don't want to assume you've read the other. So here's the first ch. of Philos. If you've read it, go ahead and jump to ch. 2 for the beginning of Mimesis. Cheers.

Disclaimed.

"Urgh, it's not enough. What are we gonna do?" Naruto fretted. He stared down at the mess that was his former teammate. He'd done this; punched a hole through his best friend's stomach from behind, using a Rasengan, no less. But unlike him, Sasuke wouldn't be shaking this one off. Not that he'd had a choice; no frontal attacks would work on the Sharingan.

His sage speed and kawarimi with his clones had held out surprisingly well against Amaterasu although the entire area was alight. He had a clone using Fuka Hoin to seal up the black flames, but it was slow going. Sasuke had managed to hit him with it once, but his Jinchuuriki cloak had been enough to protect him until he could seal away the flames. His Rasenshuriken had stood up to Susano'o and he'd wondered exactly how Sasuke intended to win this fight considering that HE at least still had an ace up his sleeve.

But he wasn't the only one, and that's when he felt it. That if he stayed in the range of Sasuke's eyesight even an instant longer, he would die. He wasn't sure what it was, this foreboding, but as a Jinchuuriki his instincts were sharp, it was one of the useful things he got from the demon including fingernails sharp enough to cut through shinobi armor; not that he'd ever used them; he didn't want to seem like a girl in a cat-fight after all.

But when his instincts blared, he disappeared in a way that couldn't be copied or faked. Or tracked. Nothing but a true teleportation jutsu could accomplish such a feat and he could almost imagine the shock and realization on Sasuke's face as Naruto's Rasengan drilled through his spine and abdomen. And now Sasuke was bleeding out at lightning speed while he could only watch helplessly.

He realized that they'd had an audience though when he saw Juugo and Suigetsu running towards them. Juugo took one look at Sasuke and once again pumped some of his flesh into Sasuke's stomach before turning the man over. When he saw the missing chunk of Sasuke's spine he despaired. There was no way to heal this without him dying.

Naruto stopped fretting when he saw the look on Juugo's face. It was a determined and resolved look that was out of place on a child's face. He looked from Juugo to Sasuke for a second before donning his own solemn look.

"Use me."

Juugo's eyes bugged out.

"What?"

Naruto looked in the man-cum-boy's eyes and repeated firmly, "Use me. Hurry."

Juugo stared at him for a second before sighing, and facing Naruto. "You need to pick me up or it wont be uniform."

Naruto did as instructed an Juugo's body flared out oddly, surrounding much of Naruto's torso. He could tell that this was draining to the other man, but stayed steady even when he felt the sickening and painful intrusion. Juugo's chest had attached itself to his and was siphoning off his flesh, using a direct tap into his chakra network to reform Naruto's body into a smaller form.

When it was over he was the same size as he was before he had a growth spurt at twelve and Juugo was a man again. Naruto was piteously tiny and it annoyed him to no end, hell he could probably pass for a seven year old if he tried.

Juugo looked at him with a twinge of regret before healing Sasuke and shrinking himself once again. He turned to Naruto as Sasuke's breath started evening out and said with relief, "Thankfully you were compatible with the cursed seal. I think your body adjusted so well because of Kyuubi, but even so, it may take you awhile to regrow."

Naruto was just relieved that he would grow again at all. He knelt down next to Sasuke as he started to wake up, his pain-filled gaze going from dazed to shocked in an instant. Sasuke looked from Juugo to Naruto with wide-eyes, realizing what had happened. He managed a croak.

"Why?"

Naruto just smiled widely, scrunching his eyes closed in the process, "Because you're my best friend. Ever since that day at the dock, I could never just let you die."

Sasuke looked like he'd been slapped, remembering the day himself. He was stunned that Naruto would go so far for such a pointless reason. He didn't bother to say that that day hadn't meant that much to him. It was comforting, to see someone that was alone like he was, but it was only a passing feeling. Something easily forgotten. That Naruto had held on to that moment all this time spoke volumes and for the first time he wondered if he really understood his old team-mate at all.

He'd attacked Naruto with all his hatred, an attack that no-one but Madara could escape, and yet Naruto had defeated him with hardly any effort.

"How?" Sasuke whispered.

Naruto gave him a knowing look, "Kyuubi's hatred no longer holds me back, nor does my own. You can't defeat me while you fight with a mind clouded by hate."

Sasuke sneered habitually, but inwardly considered the words. But-

"Madara-" he began...

"Is a shadow who's hidden from the world for over a century, taking advantage of other people's tragedies in an attempt to return to his former glory. He's a person who has come to care for nothing other than himself. He's worse than Danzo that way. If he had a reason to fight other than greed, it's long gone. Everyone he loved or hated is dead, he only has tools and obstacles now. " Naruto said with a scowl.

Sasuke was abruptly reminded of Itachi's words concerning Madara. Is that really what an Uchiha should be? He could never sacrifice their family like Itachi did. But at least Itachi didn't run away. He made his choices and accepted the consequences.

It still hurt to think of his brother. His kind brother that had been forced to sacrifice everything for the sake of Sasuke and the ninja world. Sasuke didn't want a world that could allow such things to happen and still have so much joy it. If that's how it was, he'd rather destroy everything and make the hypocrites suffer just like his brother did.

But looking at Naruto now, he wondered if that was the only way.

As if reading his mind, Naruto continued, "Love leads to sacrifice, which leads to pain and hatred. Hatred becomes revenge and calls for more sacrifice. It becomes a never-ending cycle of misery and suffering that can only be ended by forgiveness and acceptance.

But accepting the horrors of the world just makes them easier to excuse. Accepting "reality" is just another way of giving into despair and that too leads to pointless sacrifice. To accept your pain and hatred as well as that of others, without giving into it, is the hardest thing. Harder even than forgiveness. A ninja's—no, a human's-purpose is to fight hatred while protecting their precious people. That is the only answer I have."

Naruto concluded his words solemnly, gazing into Sasuke's eyes in the most direct way he could remember ever being looked at. Hearing such words from a person who looked to be all of seven years old was disconcerting, but the boy still carried Naruto's presence, which had become stronger than ever.

Sasuke wanted to ignore Naruto's words, but could almost hear his brother's voice in his head saying, 'reality is perception, and perception is flawed', but if reality was broken, then what was the truth? Kisame had taken a shine to Sasuke after he'd joined Akatsuki, maybe because Itachi had been his partner. Kisame once mentioned casually that the reason he followed Madara was because the man had never lied to him; a priceless commodity in the ninja world.

Looking at Naruto now, Sasuke realized the same thing; Naruto had never lied to him. And he knew it because he knew Naruto. Madara on the other hand...maybe he didn't lie, but he didn't tell the whole truth either. Sasuke was intelligent enough to know that.

He didn't know whether Naruto was right or not, but he could see that he believed every word he spoke utterly. And as the man in a child's body stood, Sasuke found himself envying the peaceful and certain look on his face. He knew for a fact that he'd never looked like that himself.

Naruto started to turn away before pausing and looking over his shoulder at the man on the ground.

"Maybe, since your're smarter than me, I'll trust you to figure out the rest, teme." Naruto flashed him a foxy grin before turning to Juugo, "Thank you, Juugo. Now take him and get to a safe distance."

Naruto's voice had become full of command and before Sasuke could come up with an answer or a protest, Juugo had grabbed his body and quickly carried him out of the area. He was left staring at his friend's small back as it got further and further away and registered a sharp pain in his chest—that he didn't want to examine too deeply while he was in so much physical agony.

Finally Juugo settled into a spot a fair distance away and they turned to see Madara appear in front of Naruto as if he'd been there the whole time. Naruto didn't seem startled; in fact, he seemed like he'd been expecting Madara to appear the moment Sasuke was safe, which was probably true. Since Sasuke was so important to Madara's plans, it wouldn't do for him to die before synching with Gedo Mazo.

Sasuke knew that Naruto had not only caught him, but also Madara by surprise with his sudden victory, which is why it took so long for the ancient man to intervene. He'd no doubt been arranging some countermeasure against Naruto's jutsu.

Sasuke sent chakra he could barely spare at the moment to his ears to hear their conversation. He was right. Madara had set some sort of time-space barrier; a seal field that would prevent time-space ninjutsu. Risky, but effective. Naruto wouldn't even be able to Kawarimi and with the Mangekyou and the Rinnegan, that gave Madara a definite advantage.

Apparently he came up with it after Naruto's father the Yondaime nearly killed him. Sasuke did a double-take, what? The Yondaime was Naruto's father and Madara was behind the Kyuubi attack. Looks like his brother had been telling the truth after all.

It was then that Sasuke saw one of the most horrifying sights he'd ever witnessed. It was like the night of his parents' death all over again. He felt like the same small child standing outside the door that contained Itachi and his parents' dead bodies. Fear and dread filled him.

The distance was great, but his Sharingan burned the sight into his mind as Naruto smiled. It was a calm, serene smile, completely at odds with the present situation and knowing his friend, Sasuke knew it meant only one thing. Naruto was about to do something stupid. He was about to die.

Madara must have felt it too, because he tried to escape. Because of his barrier however, he'd never make it. Before Madara could escape the seal field, Naruto activated the Kyuubi's chakra, still startlingly white, not red, a seal showing up his torso and down his arms. He went through an unfamiliar set of hand-seals before shouting, "Shiki Fuin!"

A shiver of dread crawled up Sasuke's spine and with the aid of his Sharingan he saw three large, translucent arms with kanji all over them come out of Naruto's stomach. One arm thrust its way into Madara while the other went much further before diving into the foliage and dragging out a twitching Zetsu. The third arm seemed to disappear from the area entirely before reeling in Kabuto.

Sasuke had never seen anything like it although he had heard stories of this Jutsu. He also knew that there was no way for him to stop it now. All he could do was watch. The most horrifying, and strangely gratifying, part was the slow speed at which it happened. Sasuke was watching three of the most powerful ninja alive being slowly dragged toward Naruto. No matter how they struggled they could barely move, there was no way for them to escape even with all their power. It was surreal, to say the least.

What Sasuke didn't see, however, was the way those arms branched out invisibly in thousands of directions. They followed the chakra connecting their prey to others and latched onto them as well. The ninja of the alliance could only watch in awe as every copy of Zetsu they fought froze alongside the undead ninja that Kabuto controlled.

Kakashi froze in recognition at the sight of the Shinigami's arms and widened his eyes in horror, unable, at that moment, to speak and explain the situation to the others. At the same time there were no eyes to witness the statue of Gedo Mazo shake slightly in the grasp of its one true master, the Shinigami.

Sasuke watched as the three men were dragged just outside of Naruto's reach. They convulsed a final time before becoming still. The arms pulled back, dragging out their souls through their stomachs, an evidently excruciating process.

Zetsu was the first to lose the battle, followed shortly by Kabuto. Finally there was only Madara left, struggling against the death god himself. If it were anyone other than Madara, Sasuke would admire their determination, but since the man's hand had been stained by his family's blood, he felt nothing but anticipation.

Just then he felt a wave of nausea and dread and realized that the source of the feeling was coming from Madara. His Mangekyou was focused completely on Naruto, self-preservation instincts starting to overpower his desire for the Kyuubi's power. He couldn't escape while in the Shinigami's grasp, so he settled for attacking Naruto. Amaterasu wouldn't kill him fast enough, especially with the Kyuubi, so Madara employed Kamui.

Sasuke watched the air around his former teammate distort and bit back a warning, knowing it wouldn't be heard. The Kyuubi's chakra became more intense in response. It carried a weight and power to it that was otherworldly, but not malicious like he knew Kyuubi's to be.

The chakra pushed against the rift, defying its pull with its own gravity. As a result of all the chakra it was consuming, though, the rift in space continued to grow until it seemed likely Madara would be sucked into it as well. Madara's eye spun madly as his Rinnegan struggled to force back the gravity that was pulling on him.

Still, despite the unimaginable force bearing down on his small body Naruto stood steady, slowly but surely drawing Madara's soul out of his body. It was a battle of wills and would only be a matter of time before one of them would give in.

The Shinigami now pulled the sword from its maw to reap Madara's soul, but just as it made the cut Naruto's power gave out, Madara's Kamui pulling him into another dimension even as it closed. The Shinigami looked doubly terrifying at being robbed of the soul of its summoner at the last moment before eating Madara's soul in rage, taking Gedo Mazo and its contents back into possession along with it.

The Shinigami disappeared, its work done, and Sasuke slumped with—what? Relief? Exhaustion? Defeat and disbelief? All of the things he'd been trying to accomplish had been rendered obsolete, leaving behind an empty feeling of failure and uselessness.

Naruto had died defeating Madara and saving the world, thereby proving his beliefs. And Sasuke was left with nothing. No closure; the one person who still cared for him had died, at least partially to save him.

What purpose would his existence serve now? What was left for him besides death? He could seek revenge on Konoha, but he had too much honor even after everything he'd done to spit on his best friend's sacrifice (yes, he had no choice now but to admit that Naruto was his friend). And the idea of reviving his clan left a bitter taste in his mouth after everything he'd discovered.

Not that he held Konoha blameless, he could just no longer bring himself to hope for a future in which the Uchiha clan might be unmarred by the actions of himself and Madara, not to mention what was still believed about Itachi. He had shouldered the burden of his clan's twisted fate his entire life and had no desire to pass it on.

So what did that leave him now? Sasuke's arms fell to his sides, brushing against his tattered pants. He felt a large, blunt object protruding from his equipment pouch and wondered how he had failed to notice it. He pulled it out and read the title of the book. The Tale of the Gutsy Ninja.

Sasuke opened it to the middle and saw, of all things, Naruto's name. Eyes, widening, he looked at the back of the book to see that it was written by Jiraiya years before Naruto was born. The dobe must have been named after this character, just as Sasuke was named after Sandaime's father, Sarutobi Sasuke.

Naruto must have slipped this book into his pouch before going to fight Madara. Fighting back his exhaustion, Sasuke settled down to read the book from the beginning, having nothing better left to do. By the time he finished, the pain in his chest was back; the character had been a lot like the real Naruto. The shock of Naruto's victory and death was beginning to wear off, taking the numb calm he'd been feeling with it.

Sasuke wanted to hold onto that calm until he could figure out what he would do now. It was easier to do that when he looked at Madara's corpse. With Naruto's body missing he could almost imagine the dobe to still be alive somewhere, although he knew that that was impossible.

He looked at the book again. He understood now what Naruto meant about "the answer." He'd been referring to the answer to the question this book posed. Was there such a thing as peace? Could people ever truly understand each other? Naruto had said maybe he'd leave finding the answer to Sasuke, but he was not the sort of person to believe in such a thing, much less know how to bring it about.

Just then he heard a croak and looked to see a toad coming from the trees, heading in his direction. He was slightly chagrined to realize that he didn't know the name of any of Naruto's summons besides Gamabunta. It went to show how little time they'd spent together since Naruto received the frog summon. At the dismal realization, Sasuke bit into his lip until it bled; he was NOT going to cry, dammit.

He also noticed that the toad was carrying a large scroll and looked at it quizzically. Naruto had known enough to leave the book with Sasuke, exactly how long had he been planning his own death? It was unlike him to give up, although there was probably no other conceivable way to eliminate all of his enemies at once.

The toad finally reached him and stopped. It was large, not the size of Gamabunta, but taller than a grown human.

"Uchiha Sasuke, I'm Gamakichi, Naruto's favorite summon." The toad puffed up with pride at the last bit.

"He asked me to bring you this if he ended up having to resort to _That_ jutsu." With that, he unrolled the scroll, showing the toad summoning contract. Only Sasuke's hard-earned mask of calm kept him from gaping; a summoning contract was something that was carefully hoarded by ninja, only to be entrusted to their most trustworthy allies. Sasuke hardly thought that he counted.

"He asked that you sign it so that the toads can lend you their support." He waved a webbed hand at the blank space next to Naruto's name.

Sasuke finally lost patience with the absurdity and blurted out, "Are you mad? Why would you give me your contract? Just because he asked you to is no reason-"

Gamakichi interrupted him with another careless sweep of a webbed appendage. "It's plenty reason enough, if Naruto has chosen you to be his successor, then we will honor his last wish. Besides, if you abuse the contract it can be taken away, or we can merely refuse to follow your orders.

We're not like those snake summons, we maintain close ties with out summoners and always have. Still, although we do not know you personally, if Naruto has chosen to trust you we will give you the benefit of the doubt."

After the long speech the toad stood still, staring at Sasuke implacably and waiting patiently for his decision. Sasuke sighed and looked at the contract. It represented more than just acquiring another summon, by signing it he would be acquiescing to Naruto's wishes for him.

The thought rankled, but Sasuke hardly had any other plans. He also knew that there would be a lot of people out for his blood soon as the last member of Akatsuki. It was ironic that the most likely outcome would be the people Naruto sacrificed himself to save being the ones to kill the person he had given his very flesh to keep alive. Sasuke may not have had any idea what he was going to do in the future, but he didn't plan to just die either; he didn't want to hear Naruto's bitching if he joined him too soon in the afterlife.

So he signed the contract and was promptly informed that the toads were going to use a reverse kuchiyose to summon him to Myobokuzan to talk with the Great Toad Sage himself. Feeling his strength coming to an end, he quickly told Juugo to get to the hideout and await further orders while he waited with impatience to be reverse summoned. The last thing he saw before he passed out was a small old toad standing in front of some of the weirdest (purple) plant-life he'd ever seen.

"Welcome to Myobokuzan, Sasuke-chan."

* * *

R&R Please.


	2. Brother

Ok, here's the companion fic to Philos Adelphos. It's called Mimesis, which is Greek for imitation. It'll become pretty obvious by the end of the chapter why I'm calling it that. Anyway, it's a short chapter, but I wanted to get it out cause I'm gonna be busy for the next few day. Here yah go.

Disclaimer.

Naruto awoke, feeling like his head bad been compressed like an egg through the opening of a coke bottle. He was dimly aware of bustling around him and cracked a crusted eye-lid open.

He would have groaned if he'd been able to make a sound; why was he in a hospital? Wasn't he supposed to be dead? Not that he wasn't glad to be alive, but if he was in a hospital, he must be in seriously bad shape.

Not to mention tiny. Damn that stupid teme, he was gonna kick his pale ass for being so stubborn that Naruto had to become a freakin' chibi to save him. After all the milk he'd drunk to get tall, too. The bastard had better be grateful.

Before he could devolve into full-on rant mode in his head, though, he heard a nurse talking quietly on the other side of the door, "...Namikaze...orphan..." She went on to list a series of injuries Naruto had presumably suffered.

Huh? How'd they know about his father? He had made sure not to make that public knowledge, after all, they couldn't afford tension with Iwa what with the threat Madara posed.

Madara- that's right, if he wasn't dead, did that mean Madara was still alive? He sighed quietly, that question would have to wait until later, cause he couldn't shake the feeling that there was something not-quite-right about his surroundings.

Sure, he'd been called oblivious many, many times, but Uzumaki Naruto had good instincts and always listened to them without fail. The hospital he was in was eerily similar to Konoha's hospital before it was destroyed during Pein's invasion. And he would know, having spent almost as much time there as in his own apartment.

The second thing that tipped him off was that he didn't recognize the nurse's voice. Not surprising, since the Alliance had many members he'd never met. What was strange was that neither Sakura nor Baa-chan seemed to be in attendance. Whenever he was injured, one of them inevitably took over his treatment and he would often wake up to a concerned Sakura, a sight that always made him feel guilty.

But neither of them were here, and there were no signs that any of his friends had visited him. Not even Iruka-sensei, which made even less sense considering their last meeting. In fact, despite the familiar surroundings, he had the distinct impression that he was in the care of strangers. Odd.

His musing over the strangeness of his situation was interrupted when an older, male voice cut through the chatter of the seemingly mystified nurses. His entire body tensed in recognition of that voice. It was Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Sandaime Hokage.

"How is the boy doing?" His Jiji asked in a soothing voice. It was him, but—his voice was less gravelly than Naruto remembered.

As the nurses quietly answered him, Naruto pinched himself hard, wondering if he was dreaming—or in a genjutsu. When nothing happened, Naruto tried to remember everything he could before he woke up here.

He remembered struggling against Madara's Kamui as he strove to pull the ancient man's soul from his body. Though his will was strong and backed by the Kyuubi, who had decided to cooperate for once, the jutsu was just too much to resist. His body was too small and he was eventually overpowered.

Naruto was sure that the Shinigami had cut away Madara's soul first, though. He grinned in triumph for a moment before wondering again how he got here and where here was. Kamui was a special space-time ninjutsu that sent the victim into another dimension—but if that's what had happened to him...

Fuck, just thinking about it made Naruto's head hurt. Instead he settled for waiting patiently to get his questions answered. He was often out of the loop and had gotten used to being confused a long time ago. But since the nurse had called him Namikaze, it would probably be best to just go along with it for now.

Just as he started to get really bored (hey, just because he was used to being confused didn't mean he enjoyed it) the door opened to admit the Sandaime Hokage in all of his _middle-aged_ glory. Naruto fought not to gape and lost. He probably looked like a reincarnated fish at the moment.

Sarutobi didn't seem fazed, however, merely chuckling a little, "Close your mouth before you attract flies, boy."

"You're the Hokage!" Naruto blurted, pointing. At the moment it was horrifyingly easy to act like a little kid again. Not that he'd ever stopped, really.

Sandaime chuckled again, "Yes, Namikaze-kun, I am."

"How'd you know my name!" Naruto accused loudly.

"You bear a startling resemblance to another orphan in this village, Namikaze Minato. On a hunch I had you tested and the result showed that you are a close relative of his, most likely his brother."

He paused to take in Naruto's reaction. He was shocked and relieved at the same time and it undoubtedly showed on his face. At least he wouldn't have to answer the uncomfortable question of why he was the son of a child.

Satisfied with his reaction, Hiruzen continued gently, "Do you know what happened to your parents?"

Naruto's eyes widened and he looked away, shaking his head no. He couldn't lie to the old man's face, so he hoped he'd take it as apprehension and not dissimulation.

Sarutobi continued quietly, "They were killed in a bandit raid on a small village named Bifuka, located several miles east of Konoha. Minato had been nearly two years old and they'd hidden him, but your mother had just given birth to you and you'd been left in the village midwife's care so she could rest.

By the time our reinforcements arrived, the village was burning. When the Konoha ninja looked for survivors they found Minato roaming the streets looking for help. Despite his young age he was able to talk and walk and apparently understood what had happened to his parents.

The ninja asked him where his parents were, but he instead told them he had to find you. Minato told them him mother asked him to find you before she died. But when they arrived at the mid-wife's home it had burned down. You were presumed dead."

Sarutobi eyed the slightly shaking boy sadly, "I know this is a lot to take in all at once, but I am hoping you will understand what your presence here means to Minato."

Naruto was struggling not to cry after hearing about his dad's childhood. No wonder he'd worked so hard to become a strong ninja.

"Can I see him?" Naruto choked out.

Sarutobi looked a bit regretful before responding, "I'm sorry, but I'll need you to answer some questions first."

Naruto blinked for a few seconds before nodding.

"You were found by one of my teams, extremely chakra exhausted with several broken bones and abrasions all over your body. Your injuries were life-threatening, so you were brought here for treatment. What happened to you and where did you grow up."

Naruto knew that the only way he'd make it through this interview was to stick to the truth as closely as possible.

"I grew up in an orphanage in Hi no Kuni. I don't remember where it was though. I was really young. They told me that I'd been left in a basket on the doorstep with a note—that my parents had been killed and I didn't have anyone to take care of me. It also said my family name was Namikaze.

The people in the orphanage named me Naruto because I liked ramen so much, even though we ate it all the time. When I was three I activated my chakra during a storm and everyone got scared of me.

When I was four I was kicked out of the orphanage. I couldn't control my chakra well and people thought I was a monster. An old man took me in after awhile, he was a ninja and wasn't scared of me. He wouldn't tell me his name, but he let me call him Jiji.

Jiji taught me to control my chakra and took care of me. We had to move around a lot though cause these masked ninja were after him. The last thing I remember was this really strong masked ninja killing Jiji and trying to kill me too with some weird jutsu. Then I woke up here."

Naruto wanted to give himself a pat on the back for coming up with a plausible story that would explain everything while being difficult to disprove.

Then again, the look on Jiji's face told him that while he believed Naruto was mostly telling the truth, he knew that he was also being intentionally vague.

"I promised." Naruto blurted, "I promised him I wouldn't tell anyone anything specific about us. I...don't want to disappoint him." He looked down at his hands, wondering how he was going to get out of this. Somehow he thought it was a bad idea to say he was from another dimension or something.

"What else did you promise him?" Sarutobi asked with a hint of suspicion.

"I promised him that I would become a Kage one day and protect everyone." Naruto knew he couldn't lie anymore, so instead he told the truth. He looked into Sandaime's eyes without hesitation, eyes glinting with determination.

The old man's eyes widened a bit before softening slightly. He nodded a bit to himself before pinning Naruto with a stern stare.

"Very well. I wont ask you anything more, but if it endangers the village, I trust you will let me know."

Naruto gaped again before grinning, "Thanks, Sandaime-Jiji!"

The not-so-old man twitched a little before smiling indulgently. "Just don't call me that in public or people may start to wonder if I'm over the hill, so to speak."

* * *

Namikaze Minato was a quiet and intelligent boy who most would describe as bookish and meek. He rarely talked to others and the only time that he really stood out (an impressive feat considering his blond hair and blue eyes) was when he demonstrated his surprising skill with taijutsu.

Indeed, besides his looks he was unremarkable until you took into account his near perfect academy scores. The way he outperformed his classmates with seemingly little effort or attention rankled many of the students, in particular one scarlet-haired firecracker, but Minato was not the type to care about popularity.

In fact, he didn't care about much of anything besides becoming a strong ninja in order to protect others. One of his earliest memories was of losing his entire family, and since he couldn't have them back he'd vowed to keep the same thing from happening to others.

So he buried himself in the life of the ninja, struggling beyond his limits every free moment he got, patiently learning everything that might one day be of use. Sure, he got lonely from time to time, but it wasn't as if he never talked to people.

And if his studies and training weren't enough to keep the nine-year-old from occasionally noticing the barren loneliness of his apartment, it was only a small feeling that passed quickly.

So when Namikaze Minato found out that his brother had been alive all these years, he felt as if his carefully cultivated existence was crumbling around him. What had he been doing all these years?

He was too rational to believe that there was more that he could have done, but that didn't make it sting any less to think that he'd been safe in Konoha while his little brother was left homeless and alone. He wondered if he would be hated, but then quickly decided it didn't matter. His brother was alive and Minato would do whatever it took to keep him that way.

* * *

Naruto waited impatiently to meet his father, trying and failing not to fidget. He wondered what Minato would be like as a child. After hearing about his father's childhood, he had wanted nothing more than to hug him and apologize for ever being angry at the man for orphaning him. He couldn't imagine how hard it had been for Minato to sentence his child to the same lonely childhood he'd had.

He obviously couldn't tell the boy the truth, though. Naruto didn't want to think about how a nine-year-old boy, genius or not, would take meeting his little brother only to be told that he was actually his son. Minato would either think he was crazy or believe him...it would be awkward either way.

So he'd decided to settle for being the best little (older) brother he could to the boy. Whether he was brother or son didn't matter too much; he was family and would make sure that this Minato got to know what that meant long before the day of his death.

The door opened slowly a few minutes later, revealing a little boy with sunny hair and sky-blue eyes. His features were regular and well-balanced and although he was small he moved with an easy grace absent in most of his gangly male peers.

He was clearly healthy, modestly dressed and most likely well-mannered. In short, exactly the type of boy who made grandmother's go into a cheek pinching frenzy. As he sized the boy up he couldn't help but compare him to himself. Minato lacked all the forcefulness of personality that Naruto embodied, he was built for speed more than strength and was calm and precise instead of brash and rough.

Now if only he had dark coloring and a bad boy persona added to the mix, he'd be like a clone of Uchiha Sasuke. Or maybe Uchiha Itachi, since Naruto had always suspected-known, really-that Sasuke was just as ruled by his emotions as him under that carefully cultivated facade of his.

Berating himself for getting distracted by his past at such an important moment, Naruto brought his attention back to Minato, thinking with a bit of sadness tinged with relief, 'it'll be easy to treat him like a brother, since he's nothing like the father I once met.'

His eyes widened, though, when he took in the raw look on the other boy's face (he might as well try to start thinking like a kid, since he'd have to act like one for a long, long time.) He furrowed his brows in worry at the desperate emotional coming off his new brother in waves. The boy was staring fixedly at Naruto's face, eyes wide and breathing irregular.

The only warning he got was the brief tremble that worked its way through Minato's body before the boy launched himself at Naruto, tackling him in a bear hug that knocked the air out of him with its force. Naruto found himself hard-pressed to keep from collapsing backwards from the weight of the larger boy, but thankfully his muscles hadn't fully atrophied from his chibification, as he'd come to think of it.

He wasn't, however, braced for the way Minato clung to him, and as a result he was taken by surprise both by the other boy's feelings and his own. Naruto had, despite his status as a Jinchuuriki, shared embraces with others numerous times. He'd exchanged comfort with his loved ones enough times to understand how important it was.

He'd held Sakura as she cried, wondering if Sasuke would ever be a part of their makeshift family again, he'd endured Iruka's surprisingly strong hugs when the man was worried Naruto wouldn't make it back from a dangerous mission, and he'd been very nearly actually crushed when Tsunade had showed her relief that he'd once again survived injuries that ought to have killed him a couple times over.

But even in those situations, there had been a knowledge that they were all ninja, and even if they had weak moments, they would still have to bear their sorrows no matter what happened. Minato's hug was different, though. He clutched Naruto like a life-raft, like he'd been drowning and needed him.

It was both scary and heart-warming at the same time to sit there while his father's child-self fought back tears. In that moment Minato wasn't a ninja in training, he was just a lonely kid that had finally been reunited with his only remaining family member.

Naruto swallowed nervously and hugged back; feeling happy and slightly overwhelmed. He'd shouldered the expectations of entire nations, but having just one child need him was terrifying. He vowed right there and then that this boy wouldn't end up as his father had.

Minato slowly drew back, clearly fighting for self control. He finally seemed to realize what he'd done because he blushed a bit in embarrassment.

"Sorry about that. I'm your older brother, Minato, just in case you have any respect left for me at all." Naruto didn't bother to hold back the grin and laughter bubbling out of his chest, "It's ok, Aniki. I'm Naruto, and I needed that too, to be honest."

His grin shrunk as he thought of the people he'd left behind, "My friends and Shishou; I wont be seeing them again." he said solemnly. Naruto blinked in surprise as tears stung his eyes. He wiped them quickly before smiling, "But you're here now, so it'll be ok. Oh!"

Minato blinked owlishly at his sudden change in emotion. "Jiji said that once you came I could leave the hospital! Where are we going, Nii-chan?"

Naruto wanted to laugh at the perplexed look on Minato's face. He got dressed quickly and Minato led him out of the hospital. All the while Naruto chattered about how glad he was to be out of the horrible white castle of doom (he was always really hyper after getting out of enforced bed-rest, in fact, he would have snuck out if he didn't have to wait for Minato.)

Minato listened patiently and answered all his questions about the village. Naruto was really starting to marvel at his new brother's patience as they went around shopping for Naruto's stay in the village. Pretty much everyone he'd ever met would have hit him or stopped paying attention by now. Minato really was a genius, it seemed.

After getting clothes, bedding, and toiletries for Naruto, they did some grocery shopping and then headed back to Minato's apartment. Apparently money for Naruto's living expenses had already been added to Minato's account and they would soon be getting a two-bedroom apartment instead of Minato's small single.

In contrast to all his excited chattering at being in the village (again), Naruto sat quietly while he watched Minato cook dinner. Like many orphans, Minato knew how to make simple, healthy meals on his own and Naruto was both happy and sad to see that his father had the skill.

When he finally finished and they sat down to eat, a slightly awkward silence fell. Naruto, unsurprisingly, was the first to break it.

"Sandaime-Jiji told me what happened to our parents. I'm sorry you had to go through that alone."

Minato looked shocked for a moment at his sentiment before smiling a little.

"It's not your fault, there wasn't anything you could do. _I'm_ sorry I didn't find you. It's an older brother's job to look after the younger. Hokage-sama told me what happened to you. I know that I'm a stranger, but I hope I can ease your grief some, otouto."

Naruto felt a bit torn with guilt and sadness for a moment, but let it go with his next words, "No, you're wrong." Minato looked resigned for a moment before Naruto grinned, "It's my job to look after you too, Aniki."

And with that, the two brothers began to eat their food quickly in silence, both too hungry for idle talk. Naruto, feeling oddly tired, went to sleep soon after, promising himself that he would start getting to know his brother better the following day.

* * *

R&R if you can. : )


	3. Uzumaki

Hey, update time. Sorry it's a little late. On a brighter note, I've already started the next chapter of Joys of Possession and Red Haze and have plans for the next ch. of this fic and Philos. Also, I've been getting requests to hurry up and update Kage's Bunshin and Rueful Avenger, so I'll be thinking about them, too. And I personally want to get going on Devious as a Fox. So, in conclusion, I have no idea which story I'll have a chapter for next, but I'm gonna try to have something new up by Sunday. We'll see how it goes. Well, 'nuff rambling, on with the ch.

Disclaimer.

"I want to be in the same class as Minato!" Naruto wanted to cringe at how whiny his voice sounded. Next to him, Minato had his face in his hands, likely regretting any relation to him. Damn child's body. When he was older, if he whined, at least he didn't sound like a little girl. Well, he wouldn't have a hard time faking his age, at least.

Sandaime looked at him with a mixture of amusement and exasperation, "Naruto, you've never been formally trained at a ninja academy. Besides, you're seven. That's not much older than most of the students that enter the academy. Minato is already half-way through year three. He only has a year and a half left until his graduation. You have three and a half. You should just be glad that I'm not making you wait until next school-year to start."

The Hokage was surprised that, instead of accepting their new apartment with gratitude like he'd expected Naruto to do, he was being faced with an argument that he knew for a fact a certain chuunin should have prevented. He had an inkling that this was going to become a common occurrence and wasn't sure how to feel about that.

Naruto, meanwhile, was growling with frustration. He was so _not_ going through the entire academy curriculum again. He'd go Kyuubi and destroy the academy first. Or not, but seriously, three and a half _years_? That's longer than he spend training with ero-sennin and if you ignored the chibi part, he was still a near kage level ninja, at least.

Urgh. Guess there's no ignoring it. Naruto looked down at himself again and thought 'damn chibi' for the hundredth time that morning. He hoped Sasuke was getting beaten by baa-chan right then.

"Then test me. I'm definitely a good enough ninja to pass some stupid academy exam." Minato shot him a look that clearly said 'famous last words' and he immediately got a sinking feeling.

The Hokage's placid smile hadn't twitched an inch, but Naruto could almost sense the storm cloud gathering above his head. Looked like Hokage-jiji wasn't as patient at this point in his life. But Naruto had a dubious sense of self-preservation at best and so merely continued to glare at the village leader in defiance. After all, if he could stare down baa-chan, why not the Sandaime? He conveniently ignored the fact that Tsunade had been particularly indulgent towards him and that this Sandaime had just met him.

Luckily for him, the Sandaime Hokage was above getting truly angry at a seven year old child. If Naruto had looked his age though, he would be have been put in his place immediately by either the disappointed frown or the patented Hokage death glare that even the Uchiha couldn't match.

Instead Sarutobi merely sat back, seemingly conceding the battle of wills. Conversely, it was this that sparked the first bit of wariness in Naruto, while Minato had just gone back to cradling his head in mortification.

"Very well, a chuunin instructor will test you later. That includes a written exam. And since you're so adamant, if you fail that, you'll have until next year to pass into Minato's grade; and if you can't you'll have to start with the first years in the spring."

Naruto's face slowly dawned with horrified realization: he was totally and utterly screwed. There was no way in hell he would pass the written exam. He hadn't taken a written test since the academy and he'd failed all of those.

Sarutobi chuckled at the look on the boy's face. It almost made him feel guilty. Almost.

"That's all. I suggest you go and prepare for the test. Dismissed."

Naruto was so caught up in his own waking nightmares of Iruka-sensei yelling at him for being stupid enough to challenge the Hokage and how he should know better as an experienced ninja to object when Minato lead him out of the Hokage's office by the wrist.

* * *

The future Yondaime sighed as he lead his little brother out of the Hokage tower. Naruto just had to piss the Sandaime off by insulting the academy. Not to mention he _still_ hadn't thanked the Hokage for his patronage. Granted, it was understood that the support orphans received from the village would be repaid by the fact that they would most likely give their lives in the village's service, but it was still a bad idea to piss off the guy paying for your living expenses and sponsoring you in the academy.

Minato sighed again as he looked at Naruto's frozen form, he was equal parts awed and terrified when he thought of Naruto surviving alone in the world with a brain made of cottage cheese. The image caused the boy to snort before he steered Naruto towards the one thing he was already certain would cheer him up.

He'd asked Naruto this morning, somewhat awkwardly, about where he got his name. The other boy had cheerfully answered that he loved Ramen so much that he'd been named after a topping. Minato had smiled at his brother's laughter, but privately wondered what kind of people would name a child after food.

So Minato took him to a place where he could eat his namesake and hoped that it would cheer him up. Not being a person with much experience cheering others up, he just hoped it might help a little, so he was surprised when Naruto practically lit up at the sight of Ichiraku.

His brother whooped and ran into the ramen bar yelling 'one pork miso ramen' in a loud and reedy voice. Minato followed more sedately and ordered his own bowl in a calm, quiet voice.

As he sat slowly eating his meal he observed the interaction between his brother and the ramen chef. Ichiraku Teuchi was in his early thirties and he and his wife Miyabi had come to Konoha a few years ago to open their ramen stand. It was an immediate hit with the shinobi and the small stand had quickly become a common place to pick up a filling meal after a tiring mission or harsh day of training.

Naruto was very happily introducing himself as a ramen lover to the owner of the stand. His eyes widened for a moment when he saw Miyabi and a (sad?) look passed over his face before he started chattering happily with the man's slightly younger wife.

Minato was a very observant boy by nature and so he had already noticed the way Naruto would react oddly to some people and not at all to others. It was hard to explain what was going through his brother's head.

Did the people that he looked so sadly at remind him of people he'd lost? And what about the unusually happy reactions he had to seeing certain people like Teuchi. True, such reactions could be explained away easily, but when a person who had supposedly never been in the Leaf Village reacted with _recognition_ to so many places and people in the village, it would be foolish to dismiss it, and Minato was not a fool.

He knew there were things Naruto wasn't telling him, like how he got the scars on his cheeks, how he was able to navigate the village with no hesitation, and how he seemed to recognize many of the villagers.

In all likelihood, Naruto had more experience and knowledge of the village than he was letting on, which would have usually made him suspicious if it had been anyone other than his brother. Since Naruto _was _his brother, though, he was willing to give the younger boy the benefit of the doubt and wait for him to tell him more.

Minato was dragged from his thoughts by the sound of Naruto asking for yet another bowl of ramen. Minato eyed the stack of five bowls and decided that enough was enough.

"Just bring the bill please Teuchi-san." Minato said quickly. Naruto pouted but didn't object. He was getting treated, after all.

"You make the best ramen in the world, Ossan!" Naruto chirped and Minato and Teuchi both chuckled a bit.

"Thank you Naruto-kun." Teuchi responded politely. Naruto wrinkled his nose at the "-kun" part, but then grinned at Minato.

"We have to come here more often, Nii-san!"

Minato was already planning a "ramen funds" part of their budget. He didn't want Naruto eating their rent, after all. He didn't like it, but he accepted ramen as an inherent part of Naruto that he'd same himself a lot of trouble by accepting.

* * *

He sighed as he dragged a struggling Naruto away from the stand; it might be a good idea to put money aside for aspirin and ear plugs, as well.

Minato took Naruto to the nearest free training ground,

"Ok, unless you want to start at the academy from the beginning you're going to have to pass the test."

Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly, choosing not to speak.

Minato continued, "I get the feeling that your weakest area is the going to be the written exam, but I'll test you on the practical portion first."

Changing his mind about keeping quiet, Naruto opened his mouth to argue only to close it abruptly at the stern look Minato gave him. There was something inherently funny about a nine-year-old who could look so intimidating, but Naruto decided not to push his luck when his brother only glared harder. He cooperated as Minato tested his abilities with a taijutsu spar.

After five minutes, Naruto conceded defeat and Minato slumped to the ground next to his brother cradling his sluggishly bleeding nose. Naruto's taijutsu lacked his polished perfection, but the boy's creative mind, boundless energy, and wicked right hook more than made up for it.

If he had to wager a guess, they were roughly even at taijutsu. If it weren't for the size difference, he'd probably have been the one to lose. As it was, he didn't think Naruto would have any problem beating any of his classmates.

Naruto, for his part, was impressed by Minato's ability. His skill with taijutsu was already superior to Sasuke's when he became a genin. Add that to Naruto's size and lack of comfort fighting without Kage Bunshin, and the only real edge he had on him was his experience. Minato might not have been a child prodigy like Itachi and Kakashi, but Naruto's brother had polished his basic skills past perfection and it showed.

Next Minato tested his marksmanship with kunai and shuriken and, finding it more than satisfactory, moved on to genjutsu. Although Naruto was able to break the simple genjutsu Minato cast on him easily, Minato could practically see the chakra Naruto used to do so and decided to test his chakra control.

When asked to stick a leaf to his forehead, Naruto groaned. Minato grinned at his brother's response and made him do it anyway. To Naruto's surprise, he was able to hold the leaf to his skin for a few seconds before it fell off.

His surprise mostly stemmed from the fact that while he had good chakra control when it came to more powerful jutsu, he had still never been able to use a bunshin or anything else requiring a very small amount of chakra. It was a problem he'd resigned himself to.

So to suddenly be able to do the leaf concentration exercise, even if only for a little bit, was surprising. This is also what made Naruto realize that there was something weird about his body. He couldn't place it, but he felt different and the only reason he hadn't already noticed was because he'd been so caught up with everything that had happened.

When he finally gave up trying to figure out what was different, he became aware that Minato was staring at him oddly.

"Sorry." He chuckled a bit nervously, scratching the back of his head in a reflexive gesture.

Minato shook his head a little dubiously before speaking.

"Focus, Naruto. We don't have a lot of time before your test. You'll pass the genjutsu portion, it's only genjutsu detection and dispulsion. Can you use bunshin, kawarimi or henge? They all have to be mastered by the end of the third year. If you can already use them, it might make up for it if you fail the written exam."

With a wicked grin, Naruto poofed out of sight only to be replaced by a perfect henge of Minato. The boy was impressed, but Naruto wasn't done yet. The henge'd Naruto then disappeared, being replaced by nothing more than smoke.

Minato raised an eyebrow before dodging out of the way as Naruto attempted to tackle him from behind. Minato's eyes widened in surprise before his face took on a thoughtful expression.

"Kawarimi and henge. But kawarimi requires an object to switch places with..." Minato's eyes narrowed in realization.

"Bunshin can't be used to kawarimi, and they can't henge either. Was that a kage bunshin?"

Naruto grinned at Minato with pride.

"You figured that out fast. But how did you know about Kage Bunshin? It's a B-rank kinjutsu." (forbidden technique)

Minato frowned, "I heard a chuunin talk about wanting to learn it for recon. But more importantly, how do you know it?"

Naruto's smile dimmed substantially as he remember the night he learned the kage bunshin no jutsu.

"My sensei taught it to me because I have too much chakra to use the bunshin no jutsu."

In a way it wasn't a lie; he had only learned kage bunshin because of Iruka failing him and Mizuki's betrayal. If the man hadn't tried to kill Iruka he might be tempted to feel a bit grateful. Although by now he'd learned that even the worst people can be helpful sometimes, accidentally of course.

Minato saw the wistful look on his face and dropped the subject. Naruto already missed Iruka, but as with everyone else he'd left behind, he comforted himself by remembering that he'd see them all again one day.

Minato hmmed, "Hopefully they'll accept that instead of bunshin, although I bet they'll be more than a little shocked that you can even use it. It apparently requires enough chakra to split in half to form the clone without causing the original chakra exhaustion. You must have a lot of chakra to be able to use it so easily. There are chuunin twice our age who can't use that jutsu."

Naruto was surprised by the absence on envy in Minato's voice. He really was mature for his age, Naruto thought a bit sadly. Even when Naruto was a genin, he wasn't above being jealous of Sasuke when he learned chidori. He'd been mature in his own way, but despite that he'd had an opportunity to live his childhood without bloodshed and war.

It was yet another thing he had to thank the Sandaime for and as a result he maintained a bit of childish innocence even now that he couldn't sense in Minato. Now that he thought of it, all of the ninja in his year group were the same, even Sasuke to a certain extent. It was another thing that reminded him of Itachi and the fate of those who have their childhoods stolen from them.

He remembered what the history books said about Minato killing thousands of people over the course of the Third Shinobi War and saving Konoha in the process. Naruto already knew that he could never sit by and watch this intelligent and far too practical boy stain his hands with the blood of thousands.

He couldn't keep Minato from seeing war, but he could ensure that they won the war without that unacceptable sacrifice.

He became aware of Minato once again admonishing him to concentrate and decided to save his thoughts of the future for later.

Of course, once Minato started asking him questions about history and mathematics, he wanted very much to stop paying attention. By the end, they'd covered first aid, chakra and jutsu theory, encryption, more protocols than he cared to name, the ninja rules, anatomy, trap-making, geography, and strategy as well. Despite his experience he knew little about the study of these things.

Because of Sakura he knew first aid, he knew geography cause he'd been to many of those places, he could answer a little on chakra and jutsu theory since he specialized in ninjutsu and being a prankster he was a master of trap-making. Besides that though, he was pretty much clueless and that left Minato sighing in frustration.

"There's not much I can teach you in the time we have. You don't seem like the type for memorizing things, so I'll just try to fill in the gaps in your knowledge of history to start with. Especially the last war; if you don't know about that, you'll be failed on principle alone."

Minato went on to tell Naruto all about the causes of the second shinobi war and the main battles, as well as detailing the reasons Konoha was able to win. Naruto listened enraptured; he'd never heard history told in such an entertaining way and realized that Minato had a talent for teaching. No wonder Kakashi-sensei was so awesome.

Part of it was due to Minato having grown up during the war, since it'd finally ended only a couple years before. As with his knowledge of kage bunshin, much of what he knew about the war had been gleaned from listening to ninja discuss it.

Minato was like a walking pair of ears and had learned to eavesdrop on even most jounin unobtrusively. Or at least, they didn't comment on it. They probably thought his attempts at information gathering were adorable.

Minato spoke of some of the other topics, as well, trying to keep it simple and predict the questions that Naruto would see on the test and have the best chance of being able to answer. He too wanted to be in the same year as Naruto.

He had been worried about Naruto entering the ninja ranks early at first, but after testing him personally he had faith in his brother's abilities, even if he wasn't very academically talented.

Finally the time of Naruto's test came and Minato called an end to his lecture. Naruto's eyes were a bit glazed over, but he'd obviously made a considerable effort to pay attention. Minato just hoped it would be enough.

* * *

Minato and Naruto arrived at the academy training grounds to be greeted by a lovely brown-haired woman in her mid-twenties. She introduced herself as Umino Kaori and Minato noticed the shocked look that crossed Naruto's face at the name before he grinned broadly at the woman.

"I'm Namikaze Naruto! It's nice to meet you, Kaori-sensei." Naruto said enthusiastically.

Kaori smiled kindly at the boy's energy before schooling her features and informing Naruto that they would start with a written exam.

He was given the standard test given out halfway through the third year and two hours to complete it. Minato patiently waited for Naruto to finish while reading a book on jutsu theory by himself.

Naruto wracked his brain as he read the test. He could give at least partial answers to most of the questions. He didn't bother with the mathematics, knowing he wouldn't be able to answer, but besides that, it wasn't so bad.

He just had to remember the lesson Minato had given him. Minato had predicted most of the questions and so Naruto was able to answer them. He still didn't have a chance when it came to a trajectory question, deciphering an encryption, or listing the ninja rules, but besides that he found he could give some sort of answer either from what Minato had said or his own experience.

Actually, compared to the way Minato had grilled him, he thought the test wasn't so bad. Naruto wouldn't be surprised if, even at the age of nine, Minato knew more about some of the subjects than the chuunin instructor. Who he was pretty sure was Iruka-sensei's mother.

He finally turned in the exam to Kaori-sensei, who looked over it quickly before smiling at him. She then administered the practical exam and Naruto finally realized how difficult the academy was in this time period. She tested his proficiency with the three academy ninjutsu, taijutsu, weapons use, genjutsu repulsion, stealth and knot making, oddly enough.

It wasn't a problem for him, but even as a genin he doubted he'd be able to pass this test. It was a test for third years and it was several times more involved than his graduation exam. As he followed Kaori-sensei's instructions, he wondered why that was.

When he figured it out he felt like smacking himself in the head. It was obviously because of the war. Things were still tense and Sandaime-jiji wasn't prepared to relax the academy standards in case the current students were needed in another war in a few years.

It was a bit callous, but a wise decision, one that probably made the difference between victory and defeat in the third shinobi war. After all, there was no way they would have won a war if the genin knew nothing more than taijutsu, weapons use, basic genjutsu repulsion and the academy three.

Well, not that that was all his graduating class had known. They'd each had their individual strengths outside of academy instruction, but they were the exception rather than the rule. Most ninja in his time didn't develop their individual strengths until well after leaving the academy. Kotetsu and Izumo were a good example, they didn't get their weapons until around the time they became chuunin.

If they were this hard on the third years in this time period, then they probably tried to prepare the academy students for immediate c-ranks after graduation, and considering that the students graduated at ten, that was rigorous training indeed.

Naruto couldn't say that he was happy about that fact. Rushing the academy students to graduate with more skills at a younger age might seem like a good idea on the surface of things, and if they survived the experience was bound to toughen them up, but it had its down sides, too.

Because they were younger, the chances of death were greater regardless of preparation. And the experience they would gain might be a good thing later on, but any active duty shinobi would tell you how hard it is to develop new skills when you're constantly deployed.

In the long run it would stunt the growth of the ninja. They would be tougher in mind and body, but they would have missed out on the best years to learn and create their own unique skills. Sandaime-jiji undoubtedly realized that and considered the seemingly lax training Naruto's generation received to be an investment in the future.

A good investment, since the extra time allowed those of his generation to eventually surpass those that came before them. It made Naruto wonder how strong Kakashi-sensei could have been given more time to train and grow and less time having to fight in a bloody war. Maybe Naruto could do something to remedy that.

Finally he finished his test and went to wait with Minato for the results. The two boys sat quietly next to each other with their backs to a tree as Kaori-sensei graded the test. Finally she finished and waled over to them.

"You passed, Naruto. In the practical you placed second in the class behind Minato. That's very good, considering your age. Whoever taught you did a wonderful job in those areas. On the written, however, you barely passed. Even one point less and you would have failed. I'll be expecting you to work on that. Now, I'll trust Minato to fill you in on the details of your new class. I'll see you boys tomorrow, Hokage-sama asked me to inform him once you'd completed the exam."

When Kaori told him he'd passed, he wanted to jump for joy, but something about the woman warned him that despite her gentle demeanor, she would not take kindly to being interrupted. As soon as she was done speaking, though, Naruto whooped and tackled Minato, who chuckled amusedly at his antics. He heard Kaori chuckle lightly herself before she left them to report to the Hokage.

Minato caught the mischievous gleam in Naruto's eyes and already knew enough about him to know it meant trouble. Sure enough, Naruto took off the next moment, dragging Minato along towards Ichiraku's ramen stand. Minato fingered his wallet, wondering if there'd be anything left in it when Naruto was through.

* * *

That night Naruto found himself unable to sleep having remembered the weird feeling he'd felt earlier. His chakra control suddenly seemed to be getting better and he felt...tired. He wasn't sure what the feeling was at first, but after the second test he realized that he felt a little winded.

Despite his size, it was still weird for him to feel tired at all unless he'd done strenuous training, which he hadn't. He could still be recovering from his injuries, but that was also unusual since Kyuubi always healed his wounds.

Naruto decided to just ask the stupid fox himself what was up and settled himself into position to meditate.

As he entered his sewer (mind), he immediately noticed a difference. It was lighter and less oppressive. He couldn't ever remember a time when he hadn't felt the choking heat that filled this place.

But he understood when he got to the room that held the Shiki Fuin and the Kyuubi: correction, the room that _had_ held the Kyuubi. The giant fox that had shaped his identity for his entire life was absent from the sealed gates that took up most of the large room.

Naruto stumbled and fell on his butt on the unusually dry ground. He knew, of course, that there was another Kyuubi in this time, but he hadn't expected _his_ Kyuubi to just disappear. How was he even alive? Hell, how come he could still feel the presence of the Kyuubi's chakra inside of him if the fox himself was gone?

His eyes widened in realization; he'd stolen the fox's chakra. Maybe...

In an instant Naruto was standing in a large area surrounded by Torii gates. As he looked up, he could see the chakra that he'd stolen from the fox. It looked like it'd remained even though the fox hadn't.

On closer examination, though, there was only around three tails worth of the chakra left. Kyuubi must have had a hell of a time saving him. He felt a little guilty, actually.

He didn't get along with the fox, but he was the only reason Naruto was still alive. Naruto promised himself he'd pay his respects at the local Inari shrine when he got the chance.

Not that the damn fox would appreciate it. Naruto snorted as he left his mind.

He quickly sobered though when he realized that the remnant of the Kyuubi's chakra was probably the only thing separating him from death. He may be an Uzumaki, but that didn't mean that losing a source of chakra that he'd had inside him since the day he was born wouldn't cripple him.

His mother wasn't a jinchuuriki all her life and her chakra was strong enough to keep the Kyuubi from destroying her chakra network. His chakra network, on the other hand, had long since adjusted to the Kyuubi's presence. When the remainder ran out, he didn't know what would happen to him.

He could only think of one way out of finding out the hard way. He would have to become the jinchuuriki again if his mother wasn't already.

With that disturbing thought in mind, he fell into a restless sleep.

* * *

The third year class at Konoha's ninja academy found themselves gaping early the next morning at a blond terror.

Naruto had brazenly run into the academy classroom in front of Minato and introduced himself without waiting for Kaori-sensei to speak.

"I'm Namikaze Naruto and my dream is to save the world without dying!" announced Naruto dramatically while pumping his fist in the air. He kept a straight face but was cackling on the inside while he waited for a response. As expected, the entire class was shocked into silence, even to the extent that no one commented on the unlikelihood of such a dream ever coming true.

If there was anyone who was an expert at provoking unlikely reactions, such as a group of ninja cadets being utterly dumbfounded, it was Naruto. Although, there might be one other, who took the moment of silence as a personal affront and stood angrily. Uzumaki Kushina's fiery red hair swayed behind her as her round face turned equally red and her index finger pointed at Naruto belligerently.

"My dream is to be the first female Hokage-ttebane! There's no way you'll beat me to it!"

Naruto scratched his head in confusion at his mother's weird reasoning. He got the feeling that this was what many people had felt in the past when dealing with him. He'd even gone to the trouble of _not_ proclaiming that he would be the future Hokage cause he knew she wanted to be and she _still_ got angry anyway.

Naruto put his hands up placatingly before digging himself into an even deeper hole.

"I don't want to be Hokage. Besides, Minato's the one who'll be the next Hokage, not me."

As he watched his mother's face turn dark purple with rage, Naruto wondered whether he should be amused or afraid. He didn't think she was the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi yet since he'd heard mention of Uzumaki Mito-sama around the village, but even if she wasn't she might still try to kill him in his sleep.

He shot a look at Minato who had his face cradled in his hands. He clearly wasn't enjoying the attention he was getting as a result of Naruto's assertion. The whole class was staring back and forth between the three of them, waiting for the coming explosion. They didn't have long to wait.

"There is no way that useless pretty boy will ever be Hokage!" Kushina yelled, enraged.

Naruto blinked before summoning up the infuriating smirk that Sasuke always turned on him.

"So, you think my aniki is pretty."

He idly wondered how many colors Kushina could turn as the purple on her cheeks turned to green in a second.

"Eww! No, I..!" She didn't get to finish as Umino Kaori decided to intervene.

"That's enough, both of you. Kushina, you shouldn't insult others, I expect better from you by now. And Naruto-kun...don't provoke her." Kushina looked chagrined from the reprimand and Naruto looked sheepish before bowing and apologizing,

"I'm sorry, Kushina-san, I got a bit carried away." Kushina was surprised by the sincere apology and stared at him before crossing her arms and sitting down with a huff.

Probably knowing better than to try to get anything better out of her, Kaori continued to start class as if nothing had happened. It took about two minutes for Naruto to zone out and stop paying attention. Minato kept shooting him exasperated looks that he skillfully ignored.

He couldn't explain why he'd been compelled to tease his mother so much. Perhaps it was just that she reminded him so much of himself that he felt he could understand Sasuke's incessant taunting a little better now. It had probably been amusing and gratifying to see him react so strongly to so little provocation.

He shook his head with a soft snort, he never thought that he'd understand Sasuke's teasing. It made him miss the man even more.. He wondered how he was doing and hoped that he wasn't too unhappy.

He knew that Kakashi and Sakura would look after him, but Naruto worried that it might not be enough. He could only hope that the toads would be able to help Sasuke find some sort of peace.

Naruto smiled; he trusted his friends to look after Sasuke and Sasuke to look after them.

* * *

R&R


	4. Trust

Sigh. Minato is such a troublesome character. I had a plot and then he goes and ruins it with his over-protectiveness. And yet I'm sure that he would never just sit back and be protected like Naruto's planning, lol. Well, we'll just have to see how this will play out. Not even I know (gasp).

The day continued in similar fashion with Kushina alternately challenging Minato and picking fights with Naruto. The two brothers largely ignored her, focusing on their lessons except for the times when Naruto would start to drift off and Minato would respond by poking him on the cheek in exasperation.

The Hokage had made it explicitly clear to Naruto that if he didn't continue to pass the written tests he would have to repeat the year. Naruto responded that he'd never heard of such Draconian measures before, to which Sandaime pointed at his hat and asked him if he'd been living in a cave all his life.

At that point, Naruto couldn't resist ranting about how the great Namikaze Naruto would never be such a tight-assed Hokage. Of course, Sandaime didn't take too kindly to that, eye-brow twitching furiously while he was leaking killing intent and muttering in his gravelly voice about 'ungrateful brats who didn't know when to just shut up and look cute' and if he 'ever got a grandson like that, he'd have a coronary.'

Naruto had known better than to laugh in the Hokage's face when he was so agitated and managed to smother his giggles until he was out of the man's office. It was good to see his Jiji being so lively. When he was older, he was so sweet and serene, you would never think he had it in him to get worked up over something so trivial.

Naruto had to cover his mouth to keep from laughing out loud when he thought about Konohamaru. Minato shot him a look as if to ask 'are you still laughing about that?' Ok, maybe he was more amused than he ought to be, but Minato had never met Konohamaru.

He sobered immediately when he realized that if things went the way they had in his time Minato never would. And that was if Konohamaru would be born now at all. Or any of the others for that matter. Thoroughly depressed at the possibilities, Naruto refocused his attention on Kaori-sensei's lecture. A minute later he'd realized that Minato's long-suffering looks had morphed into worried ones.

Naruto realized that Minato probably already knew the subjects they were being taught and was paying more attention to keeping Naruto focused and generally being a busybody. That's how he'd noticed so quickly when Naruto's mood had suddenly changed.

Naruto felt a warmth suffuse his chest. He'd never had someone worry about him like that, not even Iruka-sensei. It made sense considering he was Minato's only family, but still...he worried for the boy's mental health if he spent all his time looking after him. Who knew the man who would become the Yondaime could be such a worrywart.

* * *

He sent Minato a reassuring smile and tried again to pay attention to the lecture. He wouldn't worry about his friends. Hopefully he would meet them someday, but even if he didn't he knew they were still alive, living out their lives in a world he was no longer a part of. And while that thought saddened him, it also made him happy.

Minato relaxed as the light returned to Naruto's eyes. For a moment they'd looked so dull it was alarming. He wondered if Naruto knew how clearly his thoughts showed on his face. He was more sure now than before that his brother was hiding important things about his past.

His eyes held too much knowledge and experience to be accounted for even by the childhood he'd had. He was sure that Naruto wasn't lying about his intentions though, just about his past. Minato considered discussing his observations with the Hokage, but immediately dismissed the idea when his stomach clenched with guilt at the thought.

Whatever Naruto's secrets were they were clearly of the painful, personal sort and no one's business but his own. Trying to force him to discuss them would only do more damage and Minato had the feeling that Naruto had had it bad enough already without making it worse by interrogating him.

All Minato could do was continue to look after him and hope that Naruto would tell him what was bothering him on his own. His brother seemed far too accustomed to bearing burdens alone for Minato's comfort and that was something he was determined to change.

* * *

Minato wasn't weak, so there was no reason for his brother to try to bear things for both of them. He looked at the way Naruto had screwed up his face in concentration and smiled slightly. He wouldn't let his brother handle things alone ever again.

* * *

Namikaze Minato's determination was not a thing to be underestimated.

* * *

Naruto was getting increasingly frustrated. He needed to find Mito and convince her to choose him as the next Jinchuuriki. Not that he was looking forward to getting up close and personal with the Kyuubi again, but it was better than his mom having to accept that responsibility at such a young age.

Even though he knew she could bear such a burden and still have a happy life, he didn't want her to have to. And if he was the Jinchuuriki, she could have children without risking the Kyuubi escaping. Of course there was the whole dying thing to consider, too.

But Minato was making it impossible to get away to search for Mito-sama. He was sticking to Naruto like glue; almost as if he knew Naruto was up to something. Which, considering he was a genius, was probably the case. Naruto was unbelievably happy to have family, but that didn't stop him from cussing up a storm in his head in annoyance at the boy's persistence.

Finally he just decided to wing it, things always went best for him when he came up with a plan on the fly.

So with that in mind he turned to Minato and pointed at the sky, shouting, "That's the biggest bird I've ever seen!"

Minato just stared at him like he was retarded for a minute in which Naruto carefully kept gaping at the sky over Minato's shoulder. Finally sighing in exasperation, the older boy looked over his shoulder only to find that, yes, indeed, there was nothing there.

When he looked back it was to find Naruto chuckling nervously and scratching the back of his neck. Minato rolled his eyes and punched the clone in the face, destroying it immediately. Huffing indignantly at his brother's antics he set off to find the wayward boy.

Naruto waited until Minato had left the area before climbing out of the ground. He was glad now that Kakashi had finally broken down and taught him the headhunter jutsu. There was no way he could resist learning a jutsu that his sensei had used so effectively on Sasuke during their genin exam.

Running until he found a clump of bushes that would hide him from sight, Naruto carefully drew on the fox's chakra until he felt the world come alive around him. It never ceased to amaze him how full of life the fox's chakra was. It was warm and swirled through his body almost fiercely, the complete opposite of the calm strength that came from nature chakra that had to be coaxed instead of restrained.

He searched for malicious intent within the village, trying to find the fox. Sure enough the fox's rage was a beacon that couldn't be ignored, coming from just outside the Hokage mansion and heading in the direction of the market.

He was about to cut the connection with the chakra when he felt another strong source of ill-intent. Orochimaru was in the village and his chakra was utterly foul, more putrid that the fox's straightforward hatred would ever be. Naruto sighed as he cut the chakra flow. As if he didn't have enough to deal with already.

He quickly jumped up and streaked off toward the east side of the village, hoping he could catch Mito-sama before she could enter the crowd around the marketplace.

Before he made it more than halfway there, though, he was interrupted by a figure that jumped in front of him, blocking his path.

It was Minato, who looked at Naruto blankly before asking, "Is there something I should be aware of, Naruto?"

He didn't look angry, but Naruto knew better. He also knew that it was Minato's unofficial job to keep an eye on him, since the village was still wary after the last war. By ditching the other boy he'd showed an unwillingness to abide by that one condition of his being here.

Naruto chuckled, scratching the back of his head sheepishly and trying to play it off, "Hehe, I was just gonna go check out the market. Wanna come?"

* * *

Minato looked unconvinced, but obligingly relaxed, nodding shortly. Naruto let out a whoop and started running with Minato trailing behind him.

When they got to the marketplace, it was to find it unusually crowded. Apparently a bazaar was coming through town and what seemed like half the village had turned out. Naruto despaired of ever finding Mito here, even as he dutifully looked at the wares while keeping an eye open for his ancestress.

As the minutes dragged by, he became more and more frustrated, to the point that Minato noticed his tension, glancing at him worriedly. Naruto took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

Just then he noticed a sea-green amulet at a nearby stall. It had the Uzumaki swirl on it, making him realize that his mother's clan probably hadn't been wiped out yet. He dearly wished there was something he could do to change what happened to them, but without any information about Uzushiogakure's destruction, there wasn't much he could do.

Without much thought he drifted over to the necklace and picked it up. It was beautiful; the exact same shade as his mother's hazel eyes. He thought absently that he'd like to see her wearing it.

He turned a bit and said somewhat slyly, "Isn't this the same color as Kushi-chan's eyes?"

The nickname earned him a weird look, while Minato just shrugged in response. Still, Naruto noticed the other boy's eyes linger on the piece of jewelry a little longer than necessary. Naruto placed it back on the table with a chuckle; he was going to tease his parents mercilessly once they got together.

Then he stiffened as he felt a hand descent on his shoulder gently. He might not have been the most observant shinobi, but he was experienced and generally had decent instincts. So whoever managed to touch him without him realizing it was at least an elite jounin. A stealthy one at that.

He slowly looked over his shoulder when he didn't sense an attack, only to find himself face to face with a woman with wrinkled, leathery skin and the most vibrant green eyes. She was dressed modestly but richly and had a seal earring dangling from each earlobe.

As Naruto looked into the woman's eyes he felt a deep sense of recognition and knew immediately that this woman was Uzumaki Mito. The familiarity was probably in her chakra, which, although calm, still carried that same restrained vitality Naruto's chakra did, if to a greater extent.

The woman's eyes pierced him as she asked quietly, "Who are you?"

So much for having a hard time finding her.

Naruto's eyes cut to Minato, who was watching the exchange tensely even though he probably knew there was nothing he could do against the village's matron. Naruto gave Mito what he thought was a meaningful look and responded, "Naruto. Namikaze Naruto." He said his last name a bit slower than his first and Mito's eyes sharpened at Naruto's slight lack of familiarity with his new last name.

She stepped back with apparent understanding before turning around. As she walked away she only said, "You will receive a summons in less than an hour. Come to the Hokage mansion. I suggest that you arrive on time." With that she continued forward, radiating authority and leaving Naruto feeling rather intimidated. At that moment, he could easily believe that this was the woman who helped Senju Hashirama defeat Madara.

Naruto shook himself a bit and looked at Minato. The boy was giving him a look that he recognized from having seen it on Shikamaru's face a number of times: that of a perplexed genius determined to get to the bottom of something.

Naruto just shrugged helplessly and didn't even try to come up with an excuse. It probably looked like he'd relayed some secret message to Mito; which he had, and like he had a mission is doing so; which he did. Trying to pass it off would just be more suspicious, and he was inviting enough suspicion as it was.

* * *

Naruto looked around for some sort of distraction while trying to ignore the disappointed look Minato was giving him.

Minato watched his brother dissemble with somewhat jaded eyes. He was smart enough to realize that there was more going on here than Naruto was telling him and it was extremely frustrating. More than that, though, he wanted his brother to trust him and it stung to know that he didn't.

He ran his hand through his hair and sighed, restraining his emotions like he'd been trained to do.

"I wont ask anymore, but I hope that you'll eventually trust me. We're family, Naruto, I want to help you."

Naruto stared at him with wide eyes before muttering about 'geniuses that are way too mature for their age' and sighing in resignation.

My chakra's been a little weird since that fight and I need someone with seals experience to take a look. Everyone knows Mito-sama is one of the best seal masters in the five nations. She must have noticed my chakra, even though I was searching for her. Hopefully I can get her to help me."

Minato raised an eyebrow at the vague explanation. He let it go though; Naruto was turning out to be extremely secretive and talented at evasions. Getting a straight, if vague, answer out of him was an improvement.

His forehead creased in worry, though, what chakra problem would be serious enough to warrant Mito-sama's personal attention?

* * *

"How serious is it?" Minato gave Naruto his best stern look-that he'd practiced in front of a mirror for almost a year when he was seven. He wanted to smile at Naruto's freaked out expression, but restrained himself. It was always good for a ninja to be able to intimidate a person with just a look. Watching the emotions play across Naruto's face, Minato reflected that if his brother tried to intimidate someone with a look that he'd probably only manage to come off as constipated.

Naruto for his part was extremely uncomfortable. The look on Minato's face was the same he'd seen on his dad's face when he said he couldn't bear the burden of bringing peace, (cause really, who could) but the stern glance was familiar on even Minato's nine year old face and Naruto wasn't ashamed to admit that it made him squirm.

Damn geniuses, Naruto just knew that he was being laughed at. After all, there was no way a man would survive marriage to his mother without a good sense of humor, even if the Minato that he'd been getting to know had seemed about as laidback as an adamantine bo.

Once again giving in to the inevitable, Naruto answered with a sigh, "I have a huge store of chakra, but it's not being made quickly enough. I didn't notice at first because it's such a small difference, but after our spar and the exam yesterday, I was a bit more tired than usual. It made me realize that there's a problem with my chakra network. Depending on how often I drain my chakra, I should be fine for a year or two or even longer, but eventually..."

Minato finished for him, "eventually you'd die of chakra exhaustion." Naruto heard the grim tone of Minato's voice and continued to avoid looking at him.

"Why didn't you just go the hospital?. Iryounin are the best suited to deal with something like this."

Naruto finally looked back at Minato to see a frown of concentration on his young face. Minato was definitely too smart.

Then he realized that they were still in the market. Not an easy thing to forget, but he'd gotten so focused on the conversation that he'd managed to anyway. They were still by the same stand, a little off to the side out of the flow of foot traffic, but Naruto didn't want to risk being overheard.

"We should finish this conversation at the apartment while I wait for the summons."

* * *

Minato nodded and they ran up the side of a nearby building before dashing towards home. They got some surprised stares, but ignored them; it was unusual to see normal kids their age use the rooftop highway, even in a ninja village. Then again, neither Naruto nor Minato could exactly qualify as normal.

When they reached the apartment, Naruto asked Minato if he knew any silencing jutsu. Not surprised that the answer was yes, he watched as the other boy weaved a few hand-seals before they had some privacy from any ANBU jiji had assigned to watch him. Well, with the exception of bugs, of course, but Naruto highly doubted that Sandaime-jiji would waste someone of that caliber in keeping an eye on him.

Minato looked to him for an explanation and Naruto cringed; there was only so much that he could explain to Minato before he spoke to Mito.

He took a deep breath before speaking, "Part of my chakra is sealed away because it's too dangerous and the seal isn't working right." Naruto thought wryly to himself that a seal couldn't work right with nothing much to contain. "But now my body isn't making anymore of that chakra and when the chakra in the seal runs out...I don't know what'll happen." Naruto felt pretty proud of himself for coming up with a decent explanation.

Or at least he thought so until he saw the sceptical look on Minato's face.

"That sounds more like a curse seal than a containment seal." The boy said flatly.

* * *

Naruto looked away and knew that was all the answer Minato needed. "It's complicated..." He replied weakly.

Minato ground his teeth together a bit in frustration. Even after all that, there was still more that Naruto wasn't telling him. After Naruto told him that he might die, Minato wanted to shake his brother and demand why he hadn't told him immediately. Nothing about the current situation sat well with Minato. He'd finally gotten his brother back only to find that he was a secretive boy that had obviously lived through a lot more than anyone his age should have to.

Not that Minato wasn't young himself, but he'd long ago given up on having the normal childhood that even most ninja cadets in Konoha took for granted. He was determined to become the best ninja possible, but without parents he'd had to work doubly hard to get to where he was. And at this moment he knew it still wasn't enough.

It was his responsibility to protect his younger brother, but how could he do that if Naruto wouldn't let him?

There was a small tap on the windowsill, and Minato turned to see an ANBU holding a message scroll. Naruto moved to the window and opened it, taking the scroll without a word as the ANBU disappeared. After quickly reading the contents, the younger boy handed it to Minato.

As expected, it was a summons for Naruto from Uzumaki Mito. Less expected was the summons for Minato that accompanied it. Minato looked at Naruto who merely nodded at the door. The two brothers left together, both anxiously anticipating the outcome of this meeting.

* * *

Short chapter. I'll probably release another short chap. for this fic in the next few days. Sorry I haven't updated in so long. My new job's been kickin my butt, but I'm starting to get used to it, so I should be able to release at least one chapter a week most of the time. Later. : )


	5. Spy

Disclaimed.

New ch. I'm on a roll, I got a lot of writing done even though I was sick all week. Uh, but I'm worried my writing is lacking. Anyone wanna beta for me in the future? Anyway, here ya go. Oh and I'm probably gonna stick with this fic for a few weeks. I've got some inspiration for some of the others, but I have something in particular in mind for this fic. As they say, peace contains the seeds of war. Things are changing already. : )

* * *

As they were shown into the Hokage mansion, Naruto was surprised; it looked very little like it had in his time. Instead of his jiji's simple tastes it was clear that this home was decorated by a woman's hand. The walls were tastefully adorned with calming land and seascapes and draperies to hold out the cold. Fresh flowers decorated the side table at the entrance and Naruto sniffed at them in appreciation.

There was a coat of Shinobi armor at in a nook and Naruto stared at it, realizing that it was probably the same red armor the Shodai wore. Shaking his head at the sudden realization that he was, indeed, almost thirty five years in the past, Naruto focused on not tripping over his feet while they went through the hallway leading to the drawing room.

There they found Uzumaki Mito sitting on an armchair upholstered in a red and black swirling design. She wore a light blue robe embroidered with stylized sea waves and eddies. Her eyes were shining with determination in her aged face and Naruto definitely wasn't looking forward to explaining things to her.

"Take a seat, boys." Mito ordered.

Minato and Naruto sunk onto a couch across the room and the retainer who showed them to the room left with a bow.

"Minato-kun, the reason I asked you here as well was to ask your opinion on your recently acquired brother's character. As the person with the most contact with him, I believe you are most qualified to judge whether or not he is an infiltrator."

As she said this she stared at Naruto, not even glancing at the other boy. Naruto found himself fidgeting and Mito switched her attention to Minato, apparently satisfied by whatever she'd seen.

Minato sat quietly in thought for a moment before responding quietly. "I believe he has many secrets, but I don't believe that he means Konoha any harm. More than that, I'm worried that his secrets are most dangerous to him." Minato's voice was reluctant but certain and it was painfully obvious that he wasn't happy with the way the conversation was going.

Mito seemed to consider this carefully before standing smoothly. "Thank you, Minato-kun, I will take that into consideration. Now for the rest, I would like to speak with Naruto-kun alone."

Minato nodded reluctantly and stood slowly, looking to Naruto briefly. Naruto just shot Minato a confident grin and watched as Minato left the room, looking marginally reassured. If the boy didn't relax a bit Naruto was sure that he would die of a heart attack before thirty and since Naruto was dedicated to prolonging Minato's life, he would have to start pranking him. Now most people would find pranking bad for preventing heart attacks, but then Naruto was not most people.

Naruto turned back to Mito to find her towering over him, looking as enraged as Naruto had ever seen a person. With her fiery red hair she reminded him of Sakura and that image had him cowering in his seat. He may have faced Madara without hesitation, but then he could fight back against Madara.

"Would you care to tell me why the little brother of one of Konoha's orphans contains a significant amount of Kyuubi's chakra?" Mito's expression warned him that if he didn't answer quickly there would be hell to pay.

Naruto gulped and answered carefully, "I wasn't lying about my name earlier, but for most of my life I've been known as Uzumaki Naruto, the third Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi."

Mito's face crumpled in shock for a moment before returning to the same hair-triggered rage as before. "Show me." she commanded and Naruto immediately lifted up his shirt and channeled chakra through the seal on his stomach. As the kunoichi bent to inspect the intricate seal, Naruto continued with his explanation.

"I'm not Minato's brother. I'm his and Kushina's son."

At that, Mito raised her eyes to the whisker marks on Naruto's cheeks.

"How?" she said, gesturing at the marks.

Naruto thought that she'd already guessed the answer, but gave it anyway.

"Birthmarks."

Mito frowned thoughtfully, "With my son it was only black streaks in his hair. Her seal must have weakened with time."

She looked at him seriously, "This seal requires the sacrifice of a soul."

Naruto's lips thinned, but he said nothing.

Mito nodded thoughtfully before continuing.

"I detect no lies from you, but then how are you here?"

Naruto sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Madara. I tried to kill him and got caught in his Kamui. Doubt the bastard managed to escape me though." At that Naruto bore a predatory grin that would have made a hyena proud.

Mito straightened in shock even as her face settled into a grim procelain mask.

"Impossible. Hashirama killed him himself."

Naruto returned her grim look. "He survived. And managed to get some of Shodai-sama's cells at the same time. Even now he's gathering strength and waiting for a good time to strike and extract the Kyuubi and the other Bijuu."

Naruto looked down sadly, "He waited until my mother gave birth and attacked. He used me to get her away from my father's protection and set the Kyuubi loose on Konoha. In the end my father sealed half the Kyuubi in himself and half in me. They both died protecting me. I was really well-loved."

Naruto smiled happily at that and then gave a crooked grin. "They were awesome. They stopped Madara and left me with everything I'd need to defeat him. My mom even left me some of her chakra and helped me gain control of the Kyuubi when I was old enough."

Mito raised an eyebrow at that. "You look all of seven, boy. Is that what they consider old enough in your time?"

Naruto scratched the back of his neck and chuckled sheepishly before using henge to show Mito what he ought to look like.

"How did that happen?" The woman snorted in amusement.

Naruto grinned in response. "I had to kick my friend's ass before Madara would face me and I did a little more damage than I wanted to." He sobered up at the last part before grinning slightly.

"To save the teme I got one of his teammates to give him some of my flesh. It hurt like hell, but he lived."

He sat there grinning like an idiot while Mito stared at him uncomprehendingly. By this time she'd settled onto the couch next to him to hear his story, but at the moment she looked far from relaxed.

"You fought Uchiha Madara with the body of a child?"

Naruto nodded and received an exasperated shake of the head in response.

"How foolish. It's a miracle you weren't killed."

Naruto merely beamed at her.

"I had that ero-sennin as my shishou, of course I'm a fool."

Mito chuckled a bit in understanding before sobering.

"You were searching for me in the marketplace weren't you? When I first felt the Kyuubi's chakra from you it was only a moment, but I was sure I had been located. Why?"

Naruto dropped the henge and became serious as well.

"I'm not the jinchuuriki anymore and even though I'm an Uzumaki, it's only on my mother's side. I have three tails worth of chakra left. When that runs out..."

He looked her in the eyes and saw understanding there.

"So you wish to become the Jinchuuriki again." She stated with certainty.

Naruto smiled wryly. "Wish? Not quite. Especially if I have to contend with all of the Kyuubi's chakra this time instead of half. Not to mention his bad attitude. But I have to if I want to live and I don't want Kushina to have to become the Jinchuuriki."

Mito sighed before responding, "That may be true, but convincing the council to entrust the Kyuubi to a seven year old child that has arrived in the village under mysterious circumstances and isn't even an Uzumaki... even if I know better, it wont be easy without telling them the truth. And I don't think that would be the best idea. The fewer people know of your origins, the better."

Naruto sat quietly for a moment. "Is it impossible after all?"

Mito turned to him with that fierce look back in her eyes.

"Nonsense. I will convince them, but it will be up to you to gain their trust and confidence afterwards."

Naruto grinned at that. "Just leave it to me, baa-chan."

Mito cocked an eyebrow at the nickname, but let it go at the unrepentant look on the boy's face. He was her great grandnephew, after all. She was still slightly cautious about accepting his story so easily, but there weren't any other explanations for the seal on his stomach and the chakra he contained.

She stood gracefully and said in a brisk tone, "The timing of your arrival is fortunate. I was planning on transferring the seal next year when Kushina turns ten. The final preparations would have begun next month. That seal..." She paused for a moment in thought. "Minato-kun will accompany us."

Naruto stood as well, but said in a firm tone. "I don't want him looking at my seal. He may have been the one to create the Shiki fuin in the first place and he might do so again, but I don't want it to be because he saw it on me."

Mito gave him a sympathetic look, but there was no trace of pity in her voice when she responded.

"You said yourself that you are not the best choice to become the Jinchuuriki. You had your parents' help in gaining control of the Kyuubi and unless you have that edge once again you risk loosing it on Konoha. What will you do?"

Naruto returned her gaze stubbornly.

"I'll manage until they're old enough. By then it wont make any difference if he sees it. But he doesn't need to see it now."

Mito hummed thoughtfully before responding. "Very well. But Naruto, keep in mind that there's only so much that you can keep a person from acting on their nature. I had to learn that the hard way myself."

* * *

Without another word, she lead the way out of the room, leaving Naruto to follow her while contemplating her words. Despite her warning, he knew that he would do everything in his power to keep Minato from leading the life of bloodshed and sacrifice that he had before. With that in mind, he followed Mito determinedly out of the room.

Minato stared at his tea silently as he waited for Naruto. He'd taken a sip out of politeness, but after that merely sat watching it cool. He took the time to try to put together what he knew about seals with what Naruto had told him.

No matter how he searched his memory, though, he couldn't think of a seal like the one Naruto described. He didn't have enough information.

He knew that if Naruto was dependent on the seal's chakra, he'd probably had it for years. And despite what Naruto said, Minato thought it unlikely that his body was the source of the chakra. That left a limited number of possibilities, none of which were good. Either he'd had a cursed seal placed on him or he'd had a foreign source of chakra sealed into him.

That still didn't explain how Naruto's seal was malfunctioning. Minato couldn't think of anything that would cause the flow of chakra from a seal to slow, not stop, without it being altered somehow. But Naruto hadn't mentioned anyone tinkering with his seal...

Minato sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He didn't have enough information; he's just have to wait to find out more.

A few nerve-wracking minutes later, Mito came out with Naruto trailing after her. She looked oddly optimistic, while Naruto bore a look of determination that Minato had last seen on Kushina when she declared that she would become Hokage.

"We're going to speak with the Hokage and you're coming with us." Mito said imperiously.

* * *

Minato thought wryly that if this was how Kushina would be when she grew up then he'd rather she stayed a brat.

When they arrived at the Hokage tower, they were escorted into a waiting room and informed that the Hokage was in a meeting with the council and would be awhile. Mito sat serenely, but Naruto could tell that she wanted to barge into the council room and demand the Hokage's attention.

He was impatient too, but steeled himself for a long wait. He knew from experience that those old farts could be long-winded.

As expected, it was another half hour before they were summoned into the Hokage's office. It was the same Chuunin that had braved her displeasure earlier and Naruto could tell by the exasperated look on her face that she was far too familiar with both political niceties and nervous Chuunin.

Jiji sat behind his desk and surveyed the trio as they entered his office. If he was surprised that Naruto and Minato were accompanying Mito, then he didn't show it. He smiled at Mito and opened his mouth to greet her, but was cut off when Mito started speaking, obviously impatient to get to the point.

* * *

"Hiruzen, I've decided to make Naruto my heir instead of Kushina."

Minato saw a look of shock on the usually collected Sandaime's face that probably mirrored his own. He wondered about that. It would undoubtedly take more than a change in the line of succession of even a major figure like Mito-sama to shake the Hokage.

The announcement was definitely unusual, but so was the extremity of the Hokage's reaction. Did Mito-sama have to make Naruto her successor to heal him? It didn't make sense. Usually a successor is chosen both on inheritance and ability. Naruto wasn't an Uzumaki, so why was she choosing Naruto over a blood-relative? Minato knew Naruto was talented, but that still didn't explain what was going on.

No, judging by Sandaime's reaction this succession was much more than just an inheritance and somehow it affected not only Kushina, but Naruto now as well.

Minato snapped back to attention as Sandaime spoke with narrowed eyes.

"Why would you want to make Naruto your heir; assuming the council would allow a child who's history is unverified to assume such a responsibility?"

Mito ignored the question, instead smiling a bit as she responded, "What, do you think I'm too old to choose my own successor, Hiruzen?"

Sandaime sighed, "You know I don't. But even the Hokage can't just decide something like that. I'd need the council's approval since it's a matter that's vital to village security."

Minato's eyes sharpened at the last. So there was more to this than there seemed, after all.

Mito rolled her eyes.

"Forget the council. As you said, choosing the right person is crucial to the future of the village. That makes it the responsibility of the Hokage to decide."

Hiruzen hummed thoughtfully.

"That may be, but Kushina-kun has all the necessary qualities, you said so yourself. Why would you change your mind now?"

Sarutobi's gaze took in Naruto and Minato; a worried frown knitting his brows.

Mito was quiet for a long time before answering.

"You noticed it too, correct? His eyes are like _his_ at that time."

She didn't elaborate and Sarutobi didn't bother asking who she was referring to. He looked down for a moment in remembrance before continuing.

"He's seven, Mito."

Sarutobi frowned again, not liking the idea of placing such a responsibility on such a young child.

Mito responded remorselessly, "And Kushina is ten. Either way, a child will succeed me by this time next year. He just happens to be better prepared for it."

Hiruzen found that hard to believe and frowned, realizing that there was more she wasn't telling him. He couldn't ask while the children were present, though. That was probably why she'd brought them, he thought with mild amusement.

He sighed in defeat. If she didn't want to tell him, there wasn't much he could do about it, unfortunately. While his authority extended to cover her as a member of Konoha, she was also a diplomat solidifying the alliance between Uzushiogakure. Even if she hadn't been there in many years, she still had their full backing, giving her as much power as a clan head, even without considering her marriage to his sensei and her status as the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi.

Mito continued, taking his sigh for the concession it was.

"I believe it would be best for both Kushina and Minato to be informed of what will happen. Kuhina will need to be told regardless, but Naruto will need both of them by his side if he is to succeed in this."

Hiruzen looked at Minato; the boy was a little pale, but nonetheless bore a look of fierce determination.

He then turned his gaze to Naruto and surveyed him with a critical and almost hostile gaze. The boy met his gaze calmly and even smiled a bit. The serenity he radiated did indeed remind him of Hashirama-sensei.

"Are you sure you wish to take on this burden, Naruto? It would be pointless to go ahead without your agreement." He asked the boy gently.

The child's eyes burned like red-hot coals for a moment, a surprising feat for such blue eyes, before he broke into a broad grin.

"You bet, Jiji!"

He said while he rested the back of his head against his interlaced fingers. Hiruzen thought for a moment that the boy's carefree attitude might indicate a lack of real understanding, but then remembered the look in Naruto's eyes a moment ago. Somehow, it seemed that the boy knew exactly what he was getting into. And perhaps that wasn't that far off. Sarutobi remembered the boy telling him that he'd been called a monster as a child. Maybe he _was_ more prepared for this than Kushina.

Sarutobi had been taught that there was more to being a ninja than skill and inherited traits like Kushina's chakre, and if that applied to anything, it would be the ability to bear the pain of being a jinchuuriki.

Sarutobi finally nodded his head and called over his head without looking.

"Karasu. Bring Uzumaki Kushina here."

* * *

The ANBU gave a slight incline of his head before disappearing in a shunshin.

As they waited, Sarutobi and Mito discussed plans to convince the council, and whether the transfer would take place. The two boys listened quietly to the adults discuss the details without looking at each other.

Naruto knew that Minato was confused about what was going on, and he wasn't sure what to say to break the news to him. He hadn't known the boy for long, but he knew that he would be upset about this, even if it was unavoidable.

Minato, for his part, was trying to stay calm while waiting. He couldn't do anything until he learned more, but the leaden weight in his stomach was making it hard not to be sick.

A few minutes later the masked ANBU appeared holding a struggling and red-faced Kushina. Her red cheeks stood out against her hair, making her look like she might set the room on fire at any moment.

"Put me down, jerk!" She hollered.

The ANBU calmly set her down disappearing back to his post.

"How would you like it if I carted you off to who the hell knows where?"

She muttered rebelliously; completely ignoring the unlikelihood of her accomplishing such a feat. Silence was her only answer and the Hokage sighed.

"I am sorry to call you here so suddenly, Kushina-kun." He paused for a second thoughtfully. Maybe he should have worded that a bit differently. Karasu wasn't talkative even at the best of times. Although that wasn't really surprising.

Meanwhile the energetic girl had focused on him once the object of her ire had disappeared.

"Hey, Jiji!"

She looked about ready to tackle the Hokage, an action that would make the man's ANBU guards twitchy even if she was just a child, when she noticed the presence of Minato and Naruto.

"Hey, what are girly-boy and goldfish dropping doing here?"

"Kushina." Mito called reprovingly.

The girl turned to look at her great-aunt. "Auntie, why are you here?" Kushina blinked at the older woman curiously.

Mito sighed in exasperation at her oblivious relative.

"Kushina, you need to pay more attention. You wouldn't have been brought here for something trivial."

Kushina fidgeted a bit, but had the sense to keep quiet.

Mito continued, "You are no longer going to become the Jinchuuriki."

She watched the girl's reaction carefully after telling her. She would discover whether the girl could be relied upon by how she reacted now.

The girl stopped fidgeting abruptly and gaped at the older woman openly.

"What! Why? Does that mean I'm going back to Uzushio?"

The last made three people in the room painfully aware of how young Kushina was, and Minato looked away, recalling memories he'd rather forget.

Mito's eyes softened a bit as she replied.

"I know you want to, but it is my wish that you will stay and help the Jinchuuriki control the demon."

Kushina's eyes widened as understanding dawned on her.

Before she could respond, though, Minato interrupted.

"Demon?" He said in a strained voice.

Naruto turned to Minato before anyone else could respond.

He'd been watching the expressions floating across his mother's face with something akin to awe and realized guiltily that his explanation to his brother was long overdue.

"Mito-sama is the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi." He said grimly, wanting to get this out as quickly as possible. He didn't think he could bear the look of horror and gradual understanding that was slowly creeping over Minato's face. "Before she dies, someone needs to take her place or the Kyuubi will destroy the village. Kushina was chosen, but now I'm going to take her place"

Naruto wanted to grimace at how clinical his explanation sounded, but he couldn't think of any gentle way to put it. He still remembered the horror and disbelief he'd felt when he'd discovered he was a jinchuuriki and knew that Minato wouldn't like the idea of his little brother becoming one. He was just a boy who was nowhere near the man that could place such a heavy burden on his own kin, trusting them to overcome it in time.

When he noticed almost everyone in the room staring at him, he realized it must look weird for a small child to talk in such an adult manner. He sent an apologetic glance at Mito for his harsh words before giving Minato his full attention once again.

"Why?" Was all Minato asked, looking visibly upset as Kushina stared at him a little guiltily.

Naruto smiled at Minato gently, in understanding, before becoming serious again. There was more to say and Minato deserved honestly in this at least.

"Because if I don't, I'll die." He said matter-of-factly.

There was a ringing silence in the room and Sarutobi sent Mito a demanding glance.

Damn gaki, He couldn't keep his mouth shut, could he? She wouldn't be able to get around Sarutobi's questions now.

The knowledge that Naruto had of the future was dangerous, though. It didn't matter if she knew where he came from, she wouldn't be alive much longer anyway, but Hiruzen was in a position to make huge changes with that knowledge. She trusted him not to misuse it, but she also knew he was a gentle man and it would agonize him to witness his precious people suffer when he might prevent it.

* * *

Naruto would already have to bear that burden in silence, but she believed that with Kushina and Minato's help, he would be alright. Besides, she thought wryly, he didn't seem smart enough to do any real damage, even with forbidden knowledge of things to come.

Minato stared at Naruto as the other boy rushed to explain.

"My body needs more chakra than it has. Without it, I'll die of chakra exhaustion."

Minato was frustrated. What did he have to do to earn Naruto's trust? He was sure there was much more to it than that.

He took a couple of shallow breaths before he could bring himself to respond.

"So you'regoing to have a demon sealed inside you?"Hesaid, eyes a little too wide.

Naruto looked him in the eyes and nodded.

"It's the only way." He said simply.

Minato's jaw clenched, but he said nothing. There wasn't anything he could say.

Naruto turned to Kushina.

"If you want to go home. Kushina-chan, it's ok." He said softly.

Kushina glared at the floor hard for a few seconds before walking calmly to where Naruto stood.

_Whack!_

Naruto found himself looking at the floor after being smacked upside the head by Kushina.

"Stop trying to look cool, baka!" The girl yelled shrilly. "I've been training for this for years! So there's no way you can do it alone! Besides, I'm gonna be the next Hokage! Don't underestimate me!"

Naruto rubbed the top of his head gingerly. He smiled a little, a faraway look in his eyes. Kushina was a lot like Sakura when angry.

Then he shook his head, focusing on the present and breaking into a wide grin.

"Yeah, thanks!"

Kushina blinked, caught off guard by Naruto's easy acceptance.

Minato watched all this with a sober expression. He was grateful to Kushina for agreeing to help Naruto, but that didn't distract him from the fact that there wasn't anything he himself could do.

His knowledge of bijuu and jinchuuriki was sketchy at best; mostly a result of ninja fairytales that he'd taken far too seriously when he was younger.

Which now appeared to have more truth to them than he previously thought possible.

He realized though, that without a doujutsu, specialized chakra like Kushina or specialized knowledge of Fuinjutsu there was nothing he could do to keep Kyuubi from breaking free and killing Naruto in the process. He didn't know the specifics of demon containment seals, but he was sure they were some of the most complicated seals in existence.

Minato's mouth flattened out into a thin line of determination. He would become a seal master. He'd already been interested in seals, but now he resolved to master advanced sealing as soon as possible.

His face relaxed a bit with that decision made; he would make sure he never had to watch someone he loved die again..

He looked over at Kushina and Naruto again and the sides of his mouth twitched up against his will. They were arguing over who would be the next Hokage; acting completely oblivious to the fact that all their lives had just been irrevocably changed.

As he watched them, he felt peaceful for the first time in several years. He wished that it could always be this peaceful, but the uneasy feeling in his stomach told him that nothing lasts forever.


	6. Root

Short chapter, but I have a short ch. for Kage's bunshin written too that I will release tomorrow once I type up. : ) I think I've officially gone over to the dark side. Poor Minato, I really wasn't planning on doing this to him, but it seemed like the right conclusion.

Disclaimed.

The two adults in the room watched silently as the children worked things out among themselves. The decision was made; now all that mattered was how they handled it. Mito especially felt hopeful while watching the trio. They reminded her of a young woman and two brothers who long ago had braved the perils of the ninja world together. She got the distinct impression that they would change the ninja world one day and she only regretted that she wouldn't be there to see it.

She caught Sarutobi's eye and he nodded. The man cleared his throat, catching the attention of the children.

"We will contact the three of you after we've spoken to the council, but most likely Naruto will be summoned for questioning. Prepare yourself."

Naruto nodded seriously and Sarutobi continued. "Expect to be interrogated by a Yamanaka before the council votes."

Naruto's eyes flickered to Mito even as both Kushina and Minato stepped closer to him protectively. Mito gave a small nod as Kushina erupted.

"What! Only enemies get interrogated!" She said accusingly, with her small fists flying and chubby chin quaking with anger.

Naruto smiled at her soothingly. "It's ok. I'm not an enemy of Konoha, so they wont hurt me."

She calmed down a bit, but still looked offended.

"Naruto's right," Sarutobi said calmly.

"It will be a test of his loyalty, nothing more."

Minato's expression remained blank throughout all this, a sure sign of his disbelief. Naruto looked at Sarutobi nervously, his brows knit together in worry.

"Wont it be dangerous for the Yamanaka? There's still some chakra in my seal. I don't know what will happen if he encounters it while he's in my mind."

Sarutobi raised an eyebrow at that.

"How do you know that the Yamanaka are mindwalkers?"

Naruto smiled wryly at that. "Bingo books, of course." Sarutobi hmmed, but said nothing further.

It was Mito who answered Naruto's question.

"Only a qualified seal master such as myself should examine your seal. If it has a mental manifestation, it'll be best if the interrogator avoids it."

Naruto sighed in relief while Hiruzen narrowed his eyes imperceptibly.

"Very well." The man said a little stiffly. "Dismissed."

Perhaps sensing the Hokage's frustration at the lack of information he'd received, the three dashed out of the room without a backwards glance.

Sarutobi turned to Mito. "Explain." He ordered, patience exhausted.

Mito sighed. "Remember Kinkaku and Ginkaku? It seems that they weren't the only ones who had some of the Kyuubi's chakra. Some asshole had the bright idea of sealing some of it into a small child and using him as a weapon.

The boy gained enough control of it to survive, but he obviously wasn't expected to live long. The chakra wont kill him outright, but without more of it he'll die. Naruto's body has held out surprisingly well and I believe that with help he can withstand the full brunt of the Kyuubi's chakra and even be able to control it someday."

As a ninja who had survived to old age Mito was of course a consummate liar. She played on Sarutobi's kind nature and concocted a story just believable enough to be true.

And it worked. Mito had been Sarutobi's greatest supported and confidant when he became Hokage in his teens. While he didn't have to deal with politics until after the war, his gentle nature and inexperience were held against him regardless. As the closest thing to a predecessor he had left, she stood by hi and lend him both her powerful support and wisdom. The woman had eventually become something of a surrogate mother to him and he had great faith in her judgment. Still...

"If that's the case, then it's possible he was sent for this purpose. Did he give you any more specific information?"

Mito's face grew grave as she answered, "He wouldn't say much about where he came from, but the boy has a great deal of information from his travels that we can benefit from. You know as well as I do the dangers and restrictions village ninja face in gathering information. Your student may have more luck on his travels, but the information shared among missing-nin is inevitably superior.

Apparently word has been going around that Akatsuki is gathering up power and recruiting. Naruto's shishou apparently had had a few encounters with the group and warned the boy both that the true leader of the group was a sharingan wielder and that Naruto might be targeted for the Kyuubi's chakra that he contains. I don't know about you, but when I think of rogue Uchiha that covet the Kyuubi, I can only think of one man."

Sarutobi straightened up a bit in his chair, alarmed. He had only seen Mito this grim a handful of times.

"I have no choice but to conclude that Madara is still alive somehow, and just as intent on destroying this village as he once was."

Sarutobi's eyes widened and true fear for his village showed on his face for the first time in many years.

"Impossible."

Mito nodded tensely. "That's what I thought as well. But the fact of the matter is that with the exception of his arm, Madara's body was unaccounted for after the battle at the valley of the end. We were sure he was dead, but that man has always been full of surprises." Mito finished darkly.

Hiruzen's brilliant mind flashed through the possibilities. He frowned thoughtfully. "Just who was that boy's sensei, anyway? I can't think of many ninja that would survive an encounter with Madara."

Mito shook her head and her lips thinned stubbornly. "_That_ is a little piece of knowledge that I will be taking to the grave with me. Just know that the boy is completely trustworthy or I would never risk choosing him as the next jinchuuriki. More than that, I will not say."

And true to her word, Mito's jaw clamped shut and Sarutobi knew the old battleaxe wouldn't budge any further. He sighed in defeat.

"Very well, I will trust your judgment on this matter."

Mito grinned winningly and Sarutobi stifled another sigh; it was moments like these that he could clearly see the relation between Mito and Kushina despite the gray that had replaced Mito's red hair.

The Hokage wondered briefly if he should call the council of elders now despite the general council meeting that had recently adjourned. It would be best if he had their support before bringing this matter before the general council, but he didn't really want to deal with them after the shock this meeting had given him.

Sarutobi shrugged mentally, it wasn't like they had anything else to do with their time and it was probably best to just get it over with. The old council elders had died during the last war and his teammates had taken their place. He personally thought that they were still too young to be retired advisers, but the seats had to be filled, and they happened to be the most qualified for the job.

That didn't keep him from wanting to groan, though. He could already picture the disapproving frowns his former teammates would direct his way. Why did he become Hokage again? Oh yeah, someone had to do it.

That didn't make the job any less an exercise in tedium and frustration. Especially with Danzo's increasingly creepy suggestions regarding the training of the next generation. He would undoubtedly be the hardest to convince to accept Naruto as the next jinchuuriki.

With a weary sigh, Hiruzen sent the summons and sat back to wait. Mito stood waiting serenely and Hiruzen marveled as always at the woman's confidence and composure. He himself schooled his features into blankness, wondering if one day he too would be able to project such tranquility at a moments notice.

The door to the Hokage's office opened and Sarutobi suppressed a grimace as Danzo entered unannounced; trailed by his former teammates. He really needed to hurry and find a candidate for the position of Yondaime; preferably someone with an irreproachable record.

Somehow in the years he'd been off the battlefield his councilors had lost respect for him. His personal friendship with them made things doubly difficult, but Hiruzen could not bring himself to be harsh with his most trusted comrades.

The best solution, then, was to find a reliable successor and support them after he'd retired. If need be, the power of two Hokage's would be more than enough to over-rule the council should the need present itself.

It's also be a convenient way to escape the mounds of paperwork that had taken him away from his family and aged him prematurely for far too long.

Regrettably, the biggest problem with this masterplan was finding a suitable successor. As much as it grieved him to admit none of his students were truly suited to take over the position, either by inclination or nature. He'd thought once that Tsunade had what it took to become a splendid Hokage, but her personal tragedies had ruined that and left the village short of one of its strongest and most passionate protectors.

He still grieved privately for the loss that the girl he'd thought of as his own daughter had suffered, but regardless he needed to find a suitable heir to take his place. Oh, he knew all of his students had it in them even now to become Hokage, but he suspected that at this point it would take something truly drastic to bring it out in them and he had no intention of waiting for it to come to that.

Oddly enough, he mused as he waited for Danzo to break down and ask why he'd been summoned, he had a feeling he already knew who his successor would be and now he just needed to wait for the child to grow up.

He smiled cheerfully despite the tense atmosphere and saw Danzo frown darkly in response.

"Why have you summoned us, Hiruzen?" Danzo finally asked impatiently.

Hiruzen's peaceful smile remained as he answered, "Mito-sama has selected a different child to become the jinchuuriki and I have approved of her choice. You have been summoned to give your opinions on the matter."

Danzo's eyes sharpened even as his face remained impassive, but he made no move to speak. In the end it was Koharu who asked the obvious question.

"What child could be better suited than the Uzumaki girl?"

Hiruzen nodded to Mito who spoke after a moment of thought.

"The youngest Namikaze brother contains a portion of the Kyuubi's chakra already and has demonstrated the ability to control and use it to a more advanced degree than even I am capable of. There is some doubt as to whether he would be able to do the same with all of the Kyuubi's chakra, but I believe that with Kushina-kun's help he will eventually be able to completely control the beast."

Her pronouncement met with complete silence and even Hiruzen looked surprised.

Danzo's eyes glittered with both greed and suspicion as he jumped at this chance to increase his political power.

"From what you say the boy had potential," he began in his gravelly voice. "but his loyalty is highly suspect. We can't be sure he isn't a spy sent for this very purpose. And even if he's not, there's no guarantee he wont turn on Konoha one day. With the right training, however he could become of the most powerful shinobi in our ranks."

Homura sent him a sharp glance. "Even that may be too great a risk. If he loses control when the Uzumaki child isn't present, his loyalty or lack thereof will become a moot point."

Mito grinned ferally in response to the callous way they spoke of the boy's future, causing both Koharu and Homura to tense slightly.

"Those with kekkei genkai like Kushina can give into the fox's will just as easily as those without. There's a reason Kinkaku and Ginkaku were so vicious, even though their likely descent from the Rikudou Sennin gave them immunity to its chakra.

Even jinchuuriki like Yagura who are ostensible able to control their bijuu usually end up showing signs of corruption eventually. Yet a seven year old child has shown the ability to control the chakra of the strongest tailed beast without being overcome by its will. That, more than anything, is why I have chosen him." She finished simply.

"But beware," she continued, staring sternly at Danzo, "His will will be the greatest asset we have in holding back the demon. If his will is broken, as tends to be a consequence of your 'training' methods, that advantage will be rendered useless."

Danzo looked thoughtful for a moment before bowing his head to the elder kunoichi's wisdom.

"I understand. Still, there needs to be some check on his power besides the Uzumaki girl. Something to ensure his loyalty above all else." He paused for a moment before continuing. "I have, of course, read the boy's file. The information known about him is vague at best and the only sure tie he has to this village is his brother.

So what better way to guarantee his cooperation than making his brother responsible for keeping an eye on him? I know you have already spoken to the boy about this, Hiruzen, but I think that alone is insufficient. Namikaze-kun has shown an aptitude for fuinjutsu and restraining and containment seals are a specialty of mine as you know.

Allow me to teach the boy and I have full confidence that the safety of the village can be insured in addition to turning a recognized prodigy into a ninja that may one day be capable of leading this village"

It went unsaid that this arrangement would be the compromise necessary to gain Danzo's approval on this matter. One glance at his councilors showed Sarutobi that they were satisfied with the solution as well, and he knew that he would need the support of the elder council in order to quiet the concerns of the general council. But that didn't mean he would give in to Danzo's subtle blackmail without turning the situation to his own advantage.

"I am willing to agree to your terms on the condition that Minato be turned over completely to an instructor of my choosing once he becomes a chuunin." Danzo's eyes shown with victory for a moment before Hiruzen continued.

"In addition, once that time comes, Root will be disbanded and integrated back into Konoha's forces. The war is over and there is no further need for the training of elite child soldiers. While I will not be relaxing the academy's standards any time soon, I see no need to continue sacrificing more children's childhood's to a war machine that is currently unnecessary."

The tone of the Hokage's voice was unyielding and Danzo recognized an order when he heard it. Despite this, he was not willing to leave this discussion without one more concession is his favor.

He bowed his head in insincere submission and spoke formally. "I understand, Hokage-sama. Might I then request that a tracking seal be placed on the new jinchuuriki? It would ease my mind to know the boy's whereabouts at all times if I am to be unable to have my people keep tabs on him in the future."

Hiruzen barely suppressed a snort. Sly bastard. He'd managed to both threaten Naruto's safety and imply that _his_ people would never change loyalties while still managing to sound like he was conceding the battle. Hiruzen appreciated the cleverness Danzo displayed as always, even though it was a thorn in his side once again.

Hiruzen nodded his acceptance of their deal and listened while the man proceeded to convince his teammates to do the same. He had his doubts about this decision, but he was well aware that it was the best way to ensure the boys' future while curbing Danzo's power.

After the other ninja had left his office, Mito turned to him with a slightly disappointed expression that made him want to cringe.

"I know. But it's the best I can do at this point, and his position isn't without its merit. I don't like the idea of turning Minato-kun's training over to him, but the restrictions on Naruto will be far less as a result of this and I have no doubt that Minato-kun would prefer it that way."

Mito's gaze softened a bit and she said a bit regretfully, "That's true, but Naruto will not be happy about this."

Hiruzen sighed tiredly, "He's not the only one, but we'll just have to trust Minato to protect his brother at all costs. You saw the way he reacted to the news of Naruto becoming the jinchuuriki. If he's going to protect the boy, he'll need to know exactly what sort of danger lies in store for him and this is the best way to accomplish that."

Mito cracked a wry smile at that. "It's good to see you haven't lost your touch in using that man's twisted ideals to their fullest.

Hiruzen returned her smile sadly. "Of course, he's my oldest friend, after all."


End file.
